West Virginia coal supporters taking message to Washington Sept. 15

    CHARLESTON – The West Virginia Coal Association, Citizens for Coal, the Federation for American Coal, Energy and Security (FACES of Coal), as well as several allied citizen and coal advocacy groups, will participate in a press conference and gathering held on Sept. 15 on the grounds of the United States Capitol. 

    The gathering will celebrate the American Coal Miner and the contribution coal and coal mining makes to our nation’s energy security and economic stability. Current regulatory challenges, coupled with ill-informed public opinion and damaging legislation are threatening the viability of coal mining throughout the United States and particularly in West Virginia.

    “We plan to highlight the critically important role of the American coal miner and to call on lawmakers and administration officials to discontinue efforts to regulate the coal industry – and the hundreds of thousands of jobs it provides – out of business,” said Chris Hamilton, senior vice president of the West Virginia Coal Association and co-chair of the Mountaintop Mine Coalition. “West Virginia’s congressional delegation understands the importance of coal to our local economies and national energy plan, but many federal legislators and bureaucrats do not.”

    A recent study by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee’s Minority Staff highlighted the economic effect of the Environmental Protection Agency’s ongoing moratorium on coal mining permits in Central Appalachia. According to the study, nearly 18,000 new and existing jobs and more than 80 small businesses are being jeopardized by the unlawful policy the EPA and the Corps have applied to the 190 permits still awaiting action in mid-May.

    “In Appalachia, we mine one-third of the nation’s coal and are responsible for nearly two-thirds of American coal-related jobs,” Hamilton said.

    Bryan Brown, West Virginia coordinator for the FACES of Coal campaign, said, “We need Congress to understand the vital role coal plays in America and its economic impact in West Virginia. Selective regulation that only impacts coal mining in Appalachia, like unattainable water quality standards and biased legislation like the Cardin-Alexander Bill, will cripple our regional economy and increase the use of foreign energy sources. We need the public to join us in Washington, DC to send this message loud and clear.”

    The gathering celebrating the American coal miner is being held on September 15, 2010 at Russell Park on Capitol Hill. The event begins at 9:30 am with supporters attending from West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Ohio. Anyone interested in attending the rally or joining the bus caravan is asked to call the West Virginia Coal Association at (304) 342-4153.

Governor, congressmen to meet Tuesday with local officials on future of coal industry

CHARLESTON — Gov. Joe Manchin, U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, U.S. Rep. Nick Joe Rahall and others are planning to host a private meeting on Tuesday at the governor's office in Charleston on the future of coal in West Virginia with government, industry and labor representatives.

The meeting was brought about at the request of county commissioners from Boone, Kanawha, Lincoln, Logan and Mingo counties who are worried about the future of the coal industry.

Representatives of U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd and U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller are also expected to attend.

The meeting is closed to the public, but according to a statement issued by the governor's office participants will be available to the media following the meeting's conclusion Tuesday.

Massey Energy Acquires Metallurgical and Thermal Coal Assets of Appalachian Fuels

RICHMOND, Va. -- Massey Energy Co. announced today it has completed the acquisition of select mining assets from the now bankrupt Appalachian Fuels, LLC and its affiliates. The assets, some of which were acquired in separate coal lease transactions, include 23 million tons of coal reserves, permitted deep and surface mines, a permitted preparation plant and associated refuse area, infrastructure and some mobile and mining equipment. They are located in Fayette County, W.Va., in close proximity to Massey's existing Mammoth and Nicholas Energy resource groups.

Over half of the acquired reserves are high quality metallurgical coal in the Powellton and Eagle Coal Seams. Massey plans to resume mining metallurgical coal in the Powellton Seam within a few months. The coal produced will be processed at Massey's Mammoth preparation plant. The preparation plant and the other idle deep and surface mines acquired in the transaction will not be operating immediately but could be brought back into production as market conditions warrant.

"We are very pleased with this acquisition and expect it to be almost immediately accretive to earnings," said Massey's President, Baxter F. Phillips, Jr. "We have already included additional metallurgical coal sales from the acquired mines in our plans for 2010. In the longer term we expect the permitted preparation plant and refuse area to provide us with further opportunities for developing Massey acquired and controlled coal reserves in the surrounding region."

Massey Energy Co. has a long history of making successful acquisitions of coal mining assets in Central Appalachia. The Company has increased its total coal reserves from 767 million tons in 1987 to more than 2.3 billion tons today. Of the total current reserves, 1.0 billion tons have metallurgical qualities and characteristics giving Massey the largest metallurgical coal reserves holding in the United States.

Massey Energy Co., headquartered in Richmond, Va., with operations in West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia, is the largest coal company in Central Appalachia and is included in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.