Cliffs Resumes Underground Mining at Oak Grove Mine
05/10/2011 - Power has been fully restored and underground mining has resumed at Cliffs Natural Resources’ Oak Grove Mine in Alabama, which was struck by severe weather in late April.
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. announced that power has been fully restored and underground mining has resumed at its Oak Grove Mine in Alabama. Aboveground operations at that facility had been struck by severe weather, including a tornado, during the evening of April 27, 2011.
The company indicated that although all of Oak Grove Mine's employees have returned to work, the Cliffs' operations team continues to evaluate the storm's impact to its aboveground operations, particularly for the mine's preparation plant and overland conveyor system, which suffered significant damage. Until the evaluation is complete, Cliffs plans to stockpile raw coal until the repairs to the overland conveyor system and preparation plant are completed.
"Our employees worked diligently to safely restart mining at Oak Grove Mine as quickly as possible," said Duke Vetor, Senior Vice President of Cliffs' North American Coal operations. "Now our focus is on evaluating the damage to the preparation plant and safely bringing it back into production to meet our customers' needs."
To assist in the recovery, Cliffs has donated $100,000 to the American Red Cross for tornado relief efforts in the Birmingham area. Cliffs has also announced it will provide $100,000 collectively to various local organizations that are providing basic essentials to victims within Oak Grove Mine's communities. The company has also established a Relief Fund to which its employees can make contributions in support of local relief efforts.
"Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this disaster," Vetor said. "The local communities where we operate are important stakeholders of the Company and we will continue to support organizations that provide assistance to those suffering as a result of this disaster."
Cliffs is currently assessing the impact of damage at the Oak Grove aboveground operations to the company's full-year outlook for its North American Coal business segment.
