Patriot Coal Files Lawsuit Against Peabody Energy

Patriot Coal Corporation

today filed a motion with the Bankruptcy Court in St. Louis seeking to modify collective bargaining agreements with the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA).  Patriot is filing this motion now to obtain critical financial relief in a timeframe that avoids severe business disruption.  The proposed modifications include the establishment of a Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA) trust to provide healthcare for UMWA-represented retirees, as well as changes to wages, benefits and work rules for UMWA-represented employees.  This filing follows more than four months of negotiations between representatives of Patriot subsidiaries and the UMWA.  The Company is committed to continuing efforts to reach a consensual agreement while this motion is addressed by the court.  Also today, Patriot filed an initial lawsuit against Peabody Energy Corporation

to ensure that Peabody does not attempt to use Patriot's bankruptcy to escape Peabody's own healthcare obligations to certain retirees.  "The actions we have taken today are necessary for the survival of Patriot and the preservation of more than 4,000 jobs.  Without the cost relief we are seeking, all of these jobs will be lost and it will no longer be possible