The Cumberland operations include primarily underground coal mines in Southwestern Virginia and Eastern Kentucky. The acquisition includes an estimated 416 million tons of contiguous coal reserves, a preparation plant in Kentucky served by the CSX railroad and a preparation plant in Virginia served by the Norfolk Southern railroad.
Of the estimated reserves, Massey believes more than half (216 million tons) have metallurgical coal qualities. Including the acquired Cumberland reserves, Massey has an estimated total reserve base of 2.9 billion tons, of which approximately 1.3 billion tons are of metallurgical quality.
Baxter Phillips Jr, president of Massey, said: “We are very pleased to conclude this acquisition and we look forward to integrating the Cumberland operations into our business. We welcome Cumberland’s workforce of over 1,000 talented and experienced miners and support staff and are proud to have them as part of the Massey organization.”
