Walter Energy Issues Statement on Alabama Storm Impacts
TAMPA, FL -- (Marketwire) -- 04/28/11 -- Walter Energy (NYSE: WLT) (TSX: WLT), the world's leading, publicly traded 'pure play' producer of metallurgical coal for the global steel industry, issued the following statement today from President - U.S. Operations Walt Scheller regarding weather-related impacts to its operations following the April 27 storms in central and west central Alabama.
'We experienced several large tornadoes near our Alabama operations over the past 24 hours. We had one injury at a surface mining operation which required first aid treatment, but thankfully, we have no other reports of injuries to our employees at this time,' Scheller said. 'While both the No. 4 and No. 7 mines avoided direct impact by the tornadoes, they experienced power outages which have temporarily impacted production. We expect production to resume as soon as all power is restored and any related underground issues are resolved. Our surface mining operations suffered varying degrees of damage, mostly superficial with the exception of our Taft Choctaw mine, where storm-related damage cut power to the mine and its electrically operated dragline. At this time, we are uncertain how long it will take to restore power to this facility. Our metallurgical coke plant in North Birmingham was unaffected by the storms and is operating normally.'
About Walter Energy
Walter Energy is the world's leading, publicly traded 'pure play' metallurgical coal producer for the global steel industry. The Company also produces steam coal and industrial coal, anthracite, metallurgical coke and coal bed methane gas. The Company has strategic access to high-growth steel markets in Asia, South America and Europe. Walter Energy had 2010 pro forma revenues of approximately $2.3 billion and employs approximately 4,000 employees and contractors with operations in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom. For more information about Walter Energy, please visit the company website at www.walterenergy.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
Except for historical information contained herein, the statements in this release are forward-looking and made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and may involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are based on information available to management at the time, and they involve judgments and estimates. Forward-looking statements include expressions such as 'believe,' 'anticipate,' 'expect,' 'estimate,' 'intend,' 'may,' 'plan,' 'predict,' 'will,' and similar terms and expressions. These forward-looking statements are made based on expectations and beliefs concerning future events affecting us and are subject to various risks, uncertainties and factors relating to our operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control, that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those matters expressed in or implied by these forward-looking statements. The following factors are among those that may cause actual results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements: the market demand for coal, coke and natural gas as well as changes in pricing and costs; the availability of raw material, labor, equipment and transportation; changes in weather and geologic conditions; changes in extraction costs, pricing and assumptions and projections concerning reserves in our mining operations; changes in customer orders; pricing actions by our competitors, customers, suppliers and contractors; changes in governmental policies and laws, including with respect to safety enhancements and environmental initiatives; availability and costs of credit, surety bonds and letters of credit; and changes in general economic conditions. Forward-looking statements made by us in this release, or elsewhere, speak only as of the date on which the statements were made. See also the 'Risk Factors' in our 2010 Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings with the SEC which are currently available on our website at www.walterenergy.com. New risks and uncertainties arise from time to time, and it is impossible for us to predict these events or how they may affect us or our anticipated results. We have no duty to, and do not intend to, update or revise the forward-looking statements in this release, except as may be required by law. In light of these risks and uncertainties, readers should keep in mind that any forward-looking statement made in this press release may not occur. All data presented herein is as of the date of this release unless otherwise noted.
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