Arch Coal: First quarter will be most challenging, powder River Basin coal is benefiting form current market conditions

摘要

The fourth quarter and much of January greeted Arch Coal with "challenging geology" at its Mingo Logan operation in Southern West Virginia. That along with continued rail difficulties should make the first quarter the company's weakest of the year. The Mingo Logan problems, combined with rail sluggishness, reduced shipments of the company's higher-priced spot and metallurgical coal, causing average per-ton realizations to slip modestly in the fourth quarter after three successive quarters of higher average pricing. Meanwhile, lower production volumes at Mingo Logan resulted in an average increase in per-ton operating costs in Central Appalachia of roughly 1.25 dollars as compared to expectations.