Douglas County-based Westmoreland Coal Co. has agreed to purchase Chevron Mining Inc.’s Kemmerer Mine in southwestern Wyoming for $179 million plus about $14 million in working capital.
Westmoreland said it anticipates the purchase price will be funded through a combination of cash consideration of about $74 million, plus the assumption of about $118 million in certain liabilities.
Over the past five years, Kemmerer has produced an average of 4.7 million tons of high-quality sub-bituminous coal for sale to the adjacent Naughton Power Station, as well as various customers in the region.
The transaction includes about 118 million tons of coal reserves as of Dec. 31, enough for 20 years of production.
The company said that substantially all of Kemmerer’s projected production from 2012 through 2016 is committed and priced under existing sales contracts.
“We view the Kemmerer workforce, which totals 290 people, as a core component of the transaction,” said Keith Alessi, Westmoreland’s president and chief executive. “Employees of Kemmerer will be a tremendous addition to our company, and we look forward to welcoming them to the Westmoreland family.”
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
