ST. LOUIS, April 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Peabody (NYSE:
BTU) announced today that it will retain the Metropolitan
metallurgical coal mine and its associated 16.67 percent interest
in Port Kembla Coal Terminal in the company's portfolio, after
proposed purchaser South32 terminated the purchase contract after
it was unable to obtain clearance from the Australian Competition
and Consumer Commission (ACCC) within the timeframe required under
the contract.
"We are surprised that South32 and the ACCC reached an impasse,
given both the physical synergies and the global nature of the
metallurgical coal markets," said Peabody President and Chief
Executive Officer Glenn Kellow.
"On the other hand, we see continuing opportunities given
Metropolitan's quality coking coals and port location, and our
objective will be to operate the mine while maximizing returns in
the international marketplace."
Metropolitan Mine, which exports coal from Port Kembla in
New South Wales, sold 2 million
tons of hard coking coal in 2016 and has approximately 26 million
tons of proven and probable reserves at Dec.
31, 2016. The mine employs approximately 250 employees
and contractors.
As a result of South32 not completing the acquisition of the
mine, Peabody will retain the previously negotiated deposit.
The termination of the transaction has no effect on operations, and
Metropolitan intends to fully resume shipments following scheduled
completion of a longwall move to a new coal panel at the end of
May.
Peabody intends to update its 2017 targets including
Metropolitan Mine in its upcoming first quarter 2017 earnings
release. The company intends to continue to pursue its
financial priorities of reducing debt, investing for high returns
and returning cash to shareholders over time.
Peabody is the world's largest private-sector coal company and a
Fortune 500 company. The company is also a leading voice in
advocating for sustainable mining, energy access and clean coal
technologies. Peabody serves metallurgical and thermal coal
customers in more than 25 countries on five continents. For
further information, visit PeabodyEnergy.com.
Contact:
Vic Svec
314.342.7768
Certain statements included in this release are
forward-looking as defined in the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. The Company uses words such as "anticipate,"
"believe," "expect," "may," "forecast," "project," "should,"
"estimate," "plan," "outlook," "target," "likely," "will," "to be"
or other similar words to identify forward-looking statements.
These forward-looking statements are made as of the date the
release was filed and are based on numerous assumptions that the
Company believes are reasonable, but these assumptions are open to
a wide range of uncertainties and business risks that may cause
actual results to differ materially from expectations. These
factors are difficult to accurately predict and may be beyond the
Company's control. Such factors include, but are not limited to
those described in the Company's most recently filed Annual Report
on Form 10-K and Exhibit 99.2 of the Company's Current Report on
Form 8-K filed on April 11,
2017. Factors that could affect the Company's results or an
investment in its securities include but are not limited to:
competition in the energy market and supply and demand for the
Company's products, including the impact of alternative energy
sources, such as natural gas and renewables; global steel demand
and the downstream impact on metallurgical coal prices, and lower
demand for the Company's products by electric power generators;
customer procurement practices and contract duration; the impact of
weather and natural disasters on demand, production and
transportation; reductions and/or deferrals of purchases by major
customers and the Company's ability to renew sales contracts;
credit and performance risks associated with customers, suppliers,
contract miners, co-shippers, and trading, bank and other financial
counterparties; geologic, equipment, permitting, site access,
operational risks and new technologies related to mining;
transportation availability, performance and costs; availability,
timing of delivery and costs of key supplies, capital equipment or
commodities such as diesel fuel, steel, explosives and tires;
impact of take-or-pay arrangements for rail and port commitments
for the delivery of coal; successful implementation of business
strategies, including, without limitation, the actions the Company
is implementing to improve its organization; negotiation of labor
contracts, employee relations and workforce availability,
including, without limitation, attracting and retaining key
personnel; changes in postretirement benefit and pension
obligations and their related funding requirements; replacement and
development of coal reserves; effects of changes in interest rates
and currency exchange rates (primarily the Australian dollar);
effects of acquisitions or divestitures, including the ability to
successfully consummate planned divestitures; economic strength and
political stability of countries in which the Company has
operations or serves customers; legislation, regulations and court
decisions or other government actions, including, but not limited
to, new environmental and mine safety requirements, changes in
income tax regulations, sales-related royalties, or other
regulatory taxes and changes in derivative laws and regulations;
the Company's ability to obtain and renew permits necessary for the
Company's operations; the Company's ability to appropriately secure
its requirements for reclamation, federal and state workers'
compensation, federal coal leases and other obligations related to
the Company's operations, including its ability to utilize
self-bonding and/or successfully access the commercial surety bond
market; litigation or other dispute resolution, including, but not
limited to, claims not yet asserted; terrorist attacks or security
threats, including, but not limited to, cybersecurity breaches;
impacts of pandemic illnesses; the lack of an established market
for certain of the Company's securities, including the Company's
Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, and potential dilution of its
common stock due to future issuances of equity securities; price
volatility in the Company's securities; short-sales in the
Company's common stock; any conflicts of interest between the
Company's significant shareholders and other holders of its capital
stock; the Company's ability to generate sufficient cash to service
all of its indebtedness; the Company's debt instruments and capital
structure place certain limits on its ability to pay dividends and
repurchase common stock; the Company's ability to comply with
financial and other restrictive covenants in various agreements,
including its debt instruments; and other risks detailed in the
Company's reports filed with the SEC. The Company does not
undertake to update its forward-looking statements except as
required by law.
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SOURCE Peabody