Judge Approves Contura Proposal to Bid for 3 Blackjewel Mines

A federal bankruptcy judge has approved a plan by West Virginia-based Blackjewel LLC to begin the sale of its coal mines and other assets.

At the heart of the proposal, Tennessee-based Contura Energy Inc. will be the “Stalking Horse Purchaser,” or initial bidder, for three of Blackjewel’s surface mines.

Blackjewel is the country’s sixth-largest coal company, according to 2017 federal data. It declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy on July 1. The majority of its 1,700 employees are out of work, many awaiting back wages, as the chaotic bankruptcy has unfolded.

Southern District of West Virginia Bankruptcy Judge Frank Volk approved the order Friday. Contura will purchase Blackjewel’s two Wyoming mines — Belle Ayr and Eagle Butte — and the Pax Mine in Fayette County, West Virginia.

Read more: https://www.wvpublic.org/post/judge-approves-contura-proposal-bid-3-blackjewel-mines..

Cross-posted in the West Virginia Group.