The Ohio-based company said Wednesday that it filed the complaint in US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, where the bankruptcy proceedings are being held, on behalf of subsidiary Ohio Valley Coal, “which never employed its retirees”

“This action could leave 95,000 retired miners and their spouses throughout America without

funding for these benefits,” officials said.

Patriot is one signatory company to a multi-employer collective bargaining agreement

with the United Mine Workers of America, the nation’s largest union, which provides retiree

medical coverage and pension benefits.

The UMWA 1974 Pension Plan is already certified as extremely underfunded, Murray said, and Patriot’s 11,000 retired miners and their families are the second largest contributor.

“Ohio Valley Coal was forced to file this action because Patriot Coal is attempting to fund only up to $300 million of its liabilities, at most, and to foist the remaining of their liabilities, about $2 billion, on the other companies signatory to a wage agreement with the UMWA,” company officials said.

“If successful in their attempt, Patriot Coal will leave these unfunded liabilities to the remaining

signatory companies, including Ohio Valley Coal. This would cause the remaining signatory companies to be decimated, the coal industry to be further destroyed, and thousands of jobs to be lost.

“Ohio Valley Coal has asked the court, elected officials in Washington, and the American people to hold Patriot Coal accountable for funding their liabilities for their own retirees and their families.”

Patriot did not respond to ILN calls.

Late last week, the St Louis-based producer filed a motion to modify the UMWA benefit agreements and also lodged a lawsuit against Peabody Energy.

The motion filed in the St Louis Bankruptcy court requested modifications to Patriot’s existing collective bargaining agreements with the union.

These include establishing a Voluntary Employee Benefit Association trust to provide healthcare for retirees represented by UMWA and changes to pay, benefits and work rules for unionized employees.

The company said its UMWA-related healthcare obligations would be transferred to the Voluntary Employee’s Beneficiary Association trust.

Funding for the trust would consist of an ownership stake in the reorganized company, profit sharing of up to a maximum of $300 million and an initial cash contribution of $15 million.

Alongside the bankruptcy court motion, Patriot filed a lawsuit against Peabody Energy.

That suit has asked the bankruptcy court to declare that Peabody must continue to pay for the healthcare costs of retirees who were employed by Peabody entities that were transferred to Patriot when the company formed.

Peabody responded with a statement shortly after stating it had fulfilled its contractual healthcare obligations to Patriot since the spinoff.

“Our contract with Patriot Coal states that we will fund a portion of Patriot's retiree healthcare expenses for specified retirees,” it said.

“We have been providing funds under this contract since the spinoff.

“The contract also appropriately states that, should Patriot's benefit obligations decrease, our funding would proportionately be reduced. Patriot is taking the untenable position that our payments should continue in full in the future even if Patriot's expenses are reduced.

“Such a claim is not only unreasonable, but counter to the fundamental basis of the language in the contract. These are Patriot's obligations and, to the extent they are reduced, we will meet our agreement with Patriot to fund the new lower levels.”

Patriot first filed for bankruptcy in July.

The bankruptcy court is scheduled to decide the case on April 23.