ST. LOUIS, Oct. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Peabody Energy today announced that Miguel Madrigal has been promoted to General Manager of Business Development. Madrigal will be primarily responsible for expanding the company's business platform in Australia. He will be based in Brisbane and will continue to report to Robert L. Reilly, Peabody Energy Senior Vice President of Business Development. He will also be an integral part of the Australian senior management team.

The appointment comes as the company dramatically grows its Asia-Pacific presence from offices in China, Mongolia, Singapore and Indonesia. Emerging Asia holds the world's fastest-growing economies, and those countries are fueled by coal.

Madrigal joined the company in 2006 as General Manager of Venezuelan Operations with responsibility for managing Peabody's Venezuelan joint ventures and South American business development.

Prior to joining Peabody, Madrigal led the Venezuelan operations of Excel Coal. He also served as corporate finance advisor to a variety of mining companies in his role as Associate Director at RFC Corporate Finance LTD, a Sydney, Australia-based investment bank.

Madrigal holds a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering from the Universidad Catolica Andres Bello in Caracas, Venezuela.

Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU) is the world's largest private-sector coal company, with 2008 sales of 255 million tons and $6.6 billion in revenues. Its coal products fuel 10 percent of all U.S. electricity generation and 2 percent of worldwide electricity.

    CONTACT:
    Meg Gallagher
    (314) 342-7963

SOURCE Peabody Energy