ROANOKE, Va. (WSAZ) -- Southern Coal Corp. is recalling several hundred laid-off miners in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Virginia -- and hiring 650 new workers. The Roanoke-based company announced Tuesday that it has entered into a multi-year contract to supply coal to American Electric Power. The contract will allow it to restart mines idled earlier this year, saving 500 jobs. The company is owned by the Justice family, which includes Jim Justice, who also owns The Greenbrier resort In a statement, the Justices said that they hope the announcement makes the holidays a little better for those affected. This announcement is wonderful news to the entire Mountain State, said Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. America is the greatest nation the world has ever known, and that nation runs on coal. The commitment from the Justice Family, Southern Coal and AEP not only means 1,700 jobs for our region-but it also will have a tremendous impact on continued economic growth in the surrounding tri-state communities. Todays announcement is a victory for the hard working men and women and their families in the coal counties of Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia. The number of jobs saved and created by this multi-year agreement will benefit our region for generations to come,” Said Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear. Southern Coal said that 650 new miners will be hired over the coming weeks. In West Virginia, the mines are in Logan County. This is also where the new hires will happen, according to a company spokesperson. In Pike County, Ky., two mines will be restarting putting 150 people back to work, according to the Pike County Judge Executive. Southern Coal employs more than 1,700 people directly, and produced 9 million tons of coal in 2012 from mines in Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Alabama.
Posted on: Thu, 07 Aug 2014 02:54:20 +0000