ST. LOUIS, May 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Patriot Coal Corporation
(NYSE: PCX) today announced that it has signed an employment agreement with
Paul H. Vining to serve as President & Chief Operating Officer, effective
with the closing of the proposed acquisition of Magnum Coal Company
("Magnum"). Mr. Vining has over 30 years of experience in the coal mining
industry.
Vining is currently serving as President & Chief Executive Officer of
Magnum and is a member of Magnum's board of directors. Under Paul's
leadership since late 2005, Magnum integrated operations acquired from Arch
Coal and doubled in size to become a top-three producer in Central
Appalachia. Before joining Magnum and its predecessor company, Mr. Vining
was senior vice president of marketing and trading at Arch Coal. He also
operated a privately held coal trading, marketing and consulting company,
and served in various capacities at Peabody Energy, including Executive
Vice President of Sales and Trading, and President of Peabody COALTRADE.
Vining holds a B.S. in chemistry from the College of William and Mary, and
a B.S. in mineral engineering and an M.S. in extractive metallurgy from
Columbia University.
"We are extremely pleased that Paul will be joining our Patriot team.
Paul is one of the most capable leaders in our industry, with a wealth of
experience in every key aspect of the coal business. He will be responsible
for both operations and marketing of the combined company, and is uniquely
qualified to drive our day-to-day performance," said Patriot Chief
Executive Officer Richard M. Whiting. "We look forward to completing the
Magnum acquisition and welcoming Paul as our new President & COO. In the
interim, we will be working closely with Paul to develop the appropriate
compensation and benefits programs for the combined company, to ensure that
we attract and retain qualified mining people at all of our operations."
Acquisition of Magnum Coal Company
On April 2, 2008, the Company announced that it had signed an agreement
to acquire Magnum. Magnum sold 18.4 million tons of coal in 2007 and
operates 12 mines and 7 preparation plants in Central Appalachia. The
acquisition is subject to certain regulatory approvals and customary
closing conditions, and the issuance of common stock is subject to approval
by Patriot stockholders. The proposed transaction is expected to be
completed around mid-year.
About Patriot Coal
Patriot Coal Corporation (the "Company") is a leading producer and
marketer of coal in the eastern United States, with ten Company-operated
mines and numerous contractor-operated mines in Appalachia and the Illinois
Basin. The Company ships to electric utilities, industrial users and
metallurgical coal customers, and controls approximately 1.3 billion tons
of proven and probable coal reserves. The Company's common stock trades on
the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol PCX.
Important Information for Stockholders
The Company will file a proxy statement/prospectus with the Securities
and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") in connection with the proposed
issuance of Company common stock in the transaction with Magnum. Investors
and stockholders are urged to read the proxy statement/prospectus when it
becomes available and any other relevant documents filed with the SEC
because they will contain important information about the proposed
issuance. Investors and stockholders may obtain these documents free of
charge at the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. In
addition, documents filed with the SEC by the Company are available free of
charge by contacting investor relations by phone at 314-275-3680, in
writing to Janine A. Orf, Director of Investor Relations, or by email to
jorf@patriotcoal.com. The final proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed
to stockholders.
This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy securities, nor shall there be any sale of
securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale
would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the
securities laws of such jurisdiction.
The Company, Magnum and certain of their respective directors,
executive officers and other members of management and employees may be
deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the
stockholders of the Company in connection with the proposed issuance.
Information about the Company's directors and executive officers is set
forth in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2007 filed with the SEC on March 14, 2008 and in the proxy
statement for the Company's 2008 annual meeting of stockholders filed by
the Company with the SEC on April 7, 2008. Additional information regarding
the potential participants in the proxy solicitation and information
regarding the interests of such potential participants will be included in
the proxy statement/prospectus and the other relevant documents filed with
the SEC when they become available.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking as defined
in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements
involve certain risks and uncertainties that may be beyond our control and
may cause our actual future results to differ materially from expectations.
We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements. Factors that
could affect our results include, but are not limited to: failure to obtain
Company stockholder approval of the proposed issuance of shares in
connection with the Magnum transaction; failure to obtain, delays in
obtaining or adverse conditions contained in any required regulatory or
other approvals; availability and cost of financing; failure to consummate
or delay in consummating the transaction for other reasons; changes in laws
or regulations; changes in general economic conditions, including coal and
power market conditions; the outcome of commercial negotiations involving
sales contracts or other transactions; the Company's dependence on Peabody
Energy Corporation in the near future; geologic, equipment and operational
risks associated with mining; supplier and contract miner performance and
the availability and cost of key equipment and commodities; the Company's
ability to replace coal reserves; labor availability and relations;
availability and costs of transportation; weather patterns affecting energy
demand; legislative and regulatory developments; risks associated with
environmental laws and compliance; the outcome of pending or future
litigation; and the availability and costs of competing energy resources.
The Company undertakes no obligation (and expressly disclaims any such
obligation) to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. For
additional information concerning factors that could cause actual results
to materially differ from those projected herein, please refer to the
Company's Form 10-K and 8-K reports.
SOURCE Patriot Coal Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.patriotcoal.com
CONTACT:
Janine Orf of Patriot Coal Corporation,
+1-314-275-3680
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