Press Releases

Peabody Energy today announced that Walter J. Scheller III has been named Senior Vice President of Strategic Operations, with responsibility for leading the company's continuous improvement initiatives and implementing standard operating procedures across Peabody operations. Scheller will report to President and Chief Executive Officer Gregory H. Boyce until an Executive Vice President of Operations is named.

Scheller has nearly two decades of operations experience, most recently serving as Vice President of Northern Appalachia Gas Operations for CNX Gas Corp. He previously held the position of Vice President and General Manager of Corporate Safety with a major U.S. coal producer and held executive management positions in the safety, operations and legal functions.

Reporting to Scheller are Director of Process Improvement D. Scott Pearson and Director of Maintenance Services Michael J. Fidel.

Scheller holds a Juris Doctorate from Duquesne University, as well as a Master of Business Administration from the University of Pittsburgh and Bachelor of Science in mining engineering from West Virginia University.

Peabody's continuous improvement initiatives are part of the company's core operations for driving success, maintaining its industry-leading performance and operational excellence. The company plans to add additional resources to the strategic operations function in the near future.

Peabody Energy is the world's largest private-sector coal company, with 2005 sales of 240 million tons of coal and $4.6 billion in revenues. Its coal products fuel approximately 10 percent of all U.S. and 3 percent of worldwide electricity.

  CONTACT:
  Beth Sutton
  (505) 287-2636

SOURCE: Peabody Energy