Eskdale, West Virginia – May 2, 2000 - Catenary Coal Company, a subsidiary of Arch Coal, Inc. (NYSE:ACI), today announced that its R. E. Samples Mine had recently surpassed one million man-hours worked without a single lost-time accident.

"The employees of the Samples Mine are to be commended for this remarkable achievement," said Peter Lawson, president of Catenary Coal Company and the general manager of the Samples Mine. "The employees at the Samples Mine have embraced safety as a core value, and the concern they have for their co-workers is evident in everything they do. I am proud to be associated with such a dedicated and talented group of people."

"At Catenary, we believe that our first priority should be making sure that every employee returns home safe and healthy at the end of each shift," Lawson said. "While we are pleased with this accomplishment, we have no intention of letting down our guard. It is our belief that every accident is preventable, and we will continue to make safety our guiding principle."

In addition to its safety achievements, the Samples mine has been recognized many times for the exemplary way in which it reclaims the land after mining. In fact, Samples has twice won the state’s top reclamation award, and earlier this year it was honored by the National Wild Turkey Federation with the West Virginia Wildlife Award. To date, the Samples Mine has eliminated more than 25 miles of abandoned highwalls left by previous coal producers; re-mined over three million tons of coal refuse; and, in a cooperative effort with the West Virginia Division of Environmental Protection, reclaimed two abandoned course refuse piles.

The Samples Mine employs 307 people in Kanawha County, West Virginia. In 1999, the mine produced 5.9 million tons of clean-burning, low-sulfur coal. Most of that coal was sold to electric utilities which used it as a fuel source in the generation of electricity.

Arch Coal is the nation’s second largest coal producer, with subsidiary operations in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Wyoming, Colorado and Utah. Through these operations, Arch Coal provides the fuel for approximately 6% of the electricity generated in the United States. Last year, Arch Coal produced around 32 million tons of clean-burning, low-sulfur coal in West Virginia. Nearly 2,000 people are employed at the company’s West Virginia mining complexes.