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1980-1989 Arch Minerals Corp. offered $135 million Diamond Shamrock Coal. The deal falls through before being accepted in May of the following year. The transaction included more than 700 million tons of reserves. Many were surprised about the low price. Diamond Shamrock was selling 7 million tpy at the time. Arch Minerals was jointly owned (50:50) by the Hunt Brothers and Ashland Oil. Shell Oil and Fluor Corp. announced plans to split A.T. Massey. The nation's fifth largest coal company has been operat- ed as a 50:50 joint venture since 1980. Under the agreement, Shell would get Marrowbone, Wolf Creek and Pike County Resource Groups, along with Massey's Atlantic Coast coal terminals in Newport News, Va., and Charleston, S.C. Massey's Richmond headquarters and other mines (Martin County Coal, Sidney Coal, Rawl, etc.) would go to Fluor. In 1986, the mines going to Fluor produced 18.8 million tons. Times were tough for Island Creek Coal, but the company did make some giant strides from the difficulties of 1984, when it lost $40.3 million. "Last year's progress doesn't provide any guaran- tees for the future because coal prices will remain depressed and the industry will stay brutally competitive for the foreseeable future," said Bud Ogden, Island Creek's chairman. Quintana Minerals, formerly Robertson Coal Co., bought 500,000 acres of land in West Virginia containing 1 billion tons of coal from CSX. Coal no longer fits with company's strategic plans. Virginia Power sold Laurel Run to Island Creek. Pittston acquired Paramont Coal in Wise, Va. The assets include four surface mines and four underground mines that produced 1.2 million tons. In October 1986, U.S. Steel laid off 545 in southern West Virginia. At the end of 1986, U.S. Steel shut Alpheus Operations, *COAL, February 1988 The first COAL, February 1988. August 2012 100th Anniversary Special Issue www.coalage.com 153