Patriot Coal said on Thursday that it plans to idle two more West Virginia mines, cut production at a third and defer startup plans at a fourth.
Patriot said it plans to idle two contract mines serving its Wells complex, eliminate Saturday workdays at its Hobet complex and delay production startup at its newly developed Blue Creek complex until “the markets recover.” All four complexes are located in West Virginia.
These cuts will reduce the company’s 2009 production by 2 million tons.
"In the near-term, coal markets remain weak,” Patriot Chief Executive Officer Richard Whiting said in a statement. “As a result, we have taken actions to further reduce our 2009 production, essentially eliminating uncommitted tons from our production plans.”
When coal markets rebound, Patriot will reopen the idled facilities, he said.
These closures come on the heels of Patriot idling two other coal mines in West Virginia and laying off 400 workers in January.
Creve Coeur-based Patriot Coal Corp. (NYSE: PCX) is the third-largest producer and marketer of coal in the eastern United States, with 16 mining complexes in Appalachia and the Illinois Basin.
Source: St Louis Business Journal
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