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Oxford Founder Buys Back Coal Company

Published: February 14, 2019 |

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The founder of Oxford Resource Partners is taking back his former company and acquiring related operations in Ohio.

In 2015, Charles C. Ungurean sold the coal mining firm he started in 1985 to Westmoreland Coal Co., the sixth largest coal company in the United States.

In October, the Colorado-based Westmoreland filed for voluntary Chapter 11 protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston, Texas, as part of a restructuring agreement with an unnamed group of lenders. Westmoreland stated it had $1.4 billion in debt amid declining demand for the fuel. Westmoreland also stated it only has $770 million in assets, according to the bankruptcy filing.

A filing on Feb. 4 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas approved a bid by Ungurean to buy Westmoreland’s Ohio assets, including Oxford Mining. Court documents state Ungurean’s CCU Coal and Construction LLC will pay $3.5 million for Oxford and its assets and $1.8 million for the Buckingham Mine near Corning in Perry County, along with assuming $800,000 in tradable debt. Court documents state Ungurean’s bid was the highest, best and only viable option. Ungurean currently lives in Delaware County.

The Buckingham Mine produces about 1.2 million tons of coal annually. Much of that is shipped by rail to the American Electric Power plant in Conesville, which is set to shutdown in May 2020.

Relating to the mine, the Ohio Environmental Council is challenging the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency authorizing a surface water permit for Oxford to discharge from its wastewater treatment area in Perry County into tributaries leading to Rush Creek and Buckeye Fork. A public meeting on the matter is set for Feb. 26 at Burr Oak State Park in Glouster.

The appeal accuses the EPA of issuing a permit without approving a pollution abatement plan and not considering Oxford’s company history. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has previously cited Oxford for acid water discharge, exceeding blasting velocity, failing to notify individuals of blasting schedules and proceeding with operations prior to completing control systems.

Oxford Resource Partners, which has an office in Coshocton, did not return a call from the Tribune seeking comment on the sale.

Source:  Coshocton Tribune


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