Tag: Bankruptcy

Alpha Says Lenders Offer $500M for Coal Producer's Assets

Alpha Natural Resources says it has received a $500 million offer from existing lenders for the potential sale of the bankrupt coal producer’s core assets.

Bristol, Virginia-based Alpha announced the offer in a filing Monday in federal bankruptcy court in Richmond, Virginia.

The filing says the lenders have agreed to serve as the lead bidder. The offer would set the floor for an auction process that lets competitors make higher bids.

The offer includes all Alpha coal assets in Pennsylvania and Wyoming and some assets in Virginia and West Virginia Also included are natural gas holdings in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale and its interest in a Newport News, Virginia coal export terminal.

Alpha filed for bankruptcy protection in August and says it hopes to emerge from bankruptcy by July.

Bankruptcy Judge OKs Alpha's Bond Deal with West Virginia

A bankruptcy judge has approved a deal resolving a reclamation bond dispute between coal operator Alpha Natural Resources and West Virginia regulators.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin R. Huennekens’ order says the agreement is fair and equitable.

The order filed Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia, overruled an objection by several environmental groups.

Under the agreement, Alpha will reduce its self-bonded obligations and provide $39 million in financial commitments to back its remaining obligations.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection had ordered Alpha to replace the self bonds with other forms of bonding after the company said it might no longer meet criteria for self-bonding. Alpha contended that the DEP didn’t have the authority under bankruptcy law to require it to replace the bonds.

Alpha Natural Resources Plans to Sell Properties in 5 States

Coal operator Alpha Natural Resources plans to sell 23 mine properties in five states as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case.

Bristol, Virginia-based Alpha says in a notice filed this week in bankruptcy court that Jan. 20 is the deadline to submit qualified bids or to file any objections to the sale. The filing expands a sale list of 16 properties submitted in October.

The latest notice lists 15 properties in West Virginia, four in Kentucky, one in Tennessee, one in Virginia, and one in Illinois. Another property, the Twin Star Surface Mine, is listed in both West Virginia and Virginia. Fourteen properties are active mining operations while the others are closed or in the process of being closed.

The Bristol Herald Courier first reported the filing.

Patriot, DEP Sign $50 Million Reclamation Deal

On the same day Patriot Coal announced WARN notices had been sent to more than 1,000 Kanawha County miners, the company signed an agreement with West Virginia environmental regulators to ante up $50 million for mine reclamation projects.

The agreement with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection comes in the midst of the company’s bankruptcy proceedings in Richmond.

Signed Tuesday, Patriot has agreed to pay $12.5 million in cash to the state to assure the completion of land and water reclamation projects connected to 153 mining permits in the central and southern regions of the state.  

Patriot’s surety bonds to obtain its original mining permits on the sites will also remain in place under the deal, which total more than $158 million.

In addition, Blackhawk Mining, a Kentucky-based mining company that has agreed to buy many of Patriot’s operating mines in southern West Virginia, will pay $7.5 million toward reclamation projects and the non-profit Virginia Conservation Legacy Fund will post $30 million from profits generated at the Federal mining complex in northern West Virginia. VCLF agreed to purchase the mine after the bankruptcy.

“Without this deal, Patriot could walk away from its reclamation obligations and leave that work to the state,” DEP Secretary Randy Huffman said in a written statement Tuesday.

The deal is part of a larger bankruptcy plan of sales and debt payments. That plan will be presented to a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge in Richmond for approval Wednesday.

Environmental Regulators Don't Approve of Patriot Coal's Bankruptcy Plan

Ohio and Pennsylvania regulators say Patriot Coal's reorganization plan doesn't adequately address the company's obligations to clean up mine…

Ohio and Pennsylvania regulators say Patriot Coal’s reorganization plan doesn’t adequately address the company’s obligations to clean up mine pollution.

Both states opposed the plan’s approval in separate motions filed this week in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources says the plan would leave Patriot Coal with little ability to address environmental problems and reclaim land following operations at the Sunnyhill Mine Complex. The department’s motion says the company also won’t be able to prevent or repair any future problems.

The Pennsylvania Department of Natural Resources says the plan doesn’t adequately establish how an affiliate, Eastern Associated Coal, will meet its environmental obligations for two closed underground mines.

Scott Depot, West Virginia-based Patriot Coal filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 12.

Alpha Natural Resources Files for Bankruptcy Protection

Alpha Natural Resources is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the fourth big coal producer to do so within the last two years.The company…

Alpha Natural Resources is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the fourth big coal producer to do so within the last two years.

The company operates about 60 coal mines throughout Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Wyoming.

Coal prices have plunged in recent years as utilities have switched increasingly to natural gas, partly because of price, but also because of changing regulations.

President Barack Obama on Monday is expected to require even steeper greenhouse gas cuts from U.S. power plants.

Alpha Natural Resources Inc. is based in Bristol, Virginia,

Rivals Patriot Coal Corp., Walter Energy Inc. and James River Coal Co., have already sought bankruptcy protection.

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