ST. LOUIS (May 1, 2006) – Arch Coal, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) today announced that its board of directors has elected Anthony S. Bumbico to Vice President of Safety.

"We're pleased to recognize Tony's valuable leadership in this way," says John W. Eaves, president and chief operating officer of Arch Coal, Inc. "During Tony's first two years in the company's top safety position, our performance as measured by total incidents has improved by 24 percent. The company and its board are confident that Tony and his entire safety team will continue to work steadily toward our ultimate goal of an accident-free workplace."

Bumbico has served as corporate safety director for Arch Coal since 2004. Prior to Arch, he served as vice president of safety for Horizon Natural Resources, as well as human resources and safety director for AEP Fuel Supply. Bumbico gained valuable coal experience early in his career when he served as an underground coal miner with CONSOL Energy.

In addition to his position with Arch Coal, Bumbico provides industry leadership through his membership on the safety committees for both the National Mining Association and the West Virginia Coal Association. He also authored an article in the N.S.P.I. Journal, "Employee Involvement Impacts Results," relating to employee safety practices in the workplace.

A native of Martins Ferry, Ohio, Bumbico graduated from Ohio University in 1985 with a bachelor of science degree in pre-law. He continued his education at Ohio State University and graduated with his master of arts degree in human resource development in 1992. Bumbico received his certification in Senior Professional/Human Resources in 1993.

St. Louis-based Arch Coal is the second largest coal producer in the United States. Arch Coal's 2005 lost-time safety incident rate was roughly four times better than the industry average as reported by the Mine Safety and Health Administration. Through its subsidiary operations in Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia, Arch Coal provides the fuel for approximately 6% of the electricity generated in the United States.

Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains "forward-looking statements" – that is, statements related to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address our expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," or "will." Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For us, particular uncertainties arise from changes in the demand for our coal by the domestic electric generation industry; from legislation and regulations relating to the Clean Air Act and other environmental initiatives; from operational, geological, permit, labor and weather-related factors; from fluctuations in the amount of cash we generate from operations; from future integration of acquired businesses; and from numerous other matters of national, regional and global scale, including those of a political, economic, business, competitive or regulatory nature. These uncertainties may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by law.