The company is conducting additional testing and is working with the US Department of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to develop a plan to address this issue so that mining operations can resume. A limited number of personnel have been permitted by MSHA to re-enter the mine to maintain the mine and equipment until active mining operations resume.
Patriot Coal is a producer and marketer of coal in the eastern US, with 14 mining complexes in Appalachia and the Illinois basin. The company ships to domestic and international electric utilities, industrial users and metallurgical coal customers, and controls approximately 1.8 billion tons of proven and probable coal reserves.
