COAL MINING: Western Coal to boost production to 10M tonnes by 2013

BRITISH COLUMBIA — At its recent shareholder meeting, Vancouver-based Western Coal Corp. announced that it plans to boost annual coal output to 10 million tonnes by 2013. The company noted that metallurgical coal markets are recovering, with recent spot prices for coking coal now over US$170/tonne. Next year's contract coal prices are also expected to be significantly higher if steel demand continues to recover as predicted.

Here are the highlights of Western's plan to boost production:

?         Expand the Brule mine to 2.0 million t/y from 1.2 million.

?         Develop an underground mine at Perry Creek to boost production at            Wolverine to nearly 3.0 million t/y.

?         Restart and expand mining at Willow Creek to 1.8 million t/y.

?         Purchase new equipment so that output at two mines in West Virginia will     reach 3.2 million t/y.

Western's Brule, Wolverine and Willow Creek operations are located in northeast British Columbia near Chetwynd and Tumbler Ridge.

Please visit the website at www.WesternCoal.com.