Keith Calder is currently CEO of Western Coal. The appointment is effective upon the closing of the acquisition of Western Coal by Walter Energy, which is expected to be completed April 1, 2011.

Mr Leonard will continue as interim CEO through the closing and will continue to serve as a member of the Walter Energy board of directors.

Prior to joining Western Coal, Mr Calder has served as managing director of Rio Tinto's Copper Projects where he had overall responsibility for the execution of a global portfolio of open-pit and underground base metals and diamond projects with more than $20 billion in capital expenditures.

Mr Calder has managed a globally diverse team of more than 400 professionals and 2,000 staff and contractors as part of the strategic plan for the Copper and Diamonds Group within Rio Tinto. He joined Rio Tinto by way of the Minera Group, as the operations director for its mines in Bolivia and Argentina.

Upon joining Rio Tinto, Mr Calder progressed through its ranks with a series of responsibilities as operations director in Portugal (Neves Corvo), project engineer in Spain (Las Cruces), project director in South Africa (Palabora), managing director in Australia (North Parkes) and then led a task force on strategic mine planning in London.

Michael Tokarz, chairman of Walter Energy, said: “Mr Calder has done an outstanding job in a very short period of time delivering tremendous value to shareholders of Western Coal. Our expectation is that he will continue this track record in his new role as CEO of Walter Energy. He joins us with extensive experience in global mining operations at a transformational time for Walter Energy.”

Mr Calder said: “I am thrilled with this opportunity. Our combined company, with Western Coal's growth prospects and Walter Energy's premium coking coal and excellent track record of financial performance, has a very bright future ahead of it. I look forward to working with Mike, Joe and the rest of the Walter Energy board and the combined staff in completing this important transaction.”

Will Mr Calder's leadership benefit the firm?

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