(EnergyAsia, October 12 2011, Wednesday) — US-based Arch Coal Inc has announced organisational changes in its sales and human resources functions and the opening of a sales office in London.

Matt Ferguson will join next February 1 as a senior vice president of Arch Coal Sales Inc, reporting to David Warnecke, Arch’s senior vice president of marketing and trading. Mr Ferguson will be responsible for metallurgical and thermal sales into the European and South American markets, domestic metallurgical sales, trading and commercial logistics.

He previously served nine years with BHP Billiton. Most recently he spent five years as general manager of marketing with responsibility for the marketing of coal from BHP’s global equity production and trading portfolio in South Africa, US, Australia and Indonesia.

Jennifer Johnson will continue as a senior vice president of Arch Coal Sales, with responsibility for its domestic thermal coal sales and will continue reporting to Mr Warnecke. She joined Arch in 2006, and most recently was responsible for Powder River Basin coal sales and trading.

John Ziegler will become senior director of compensation and benefits, reporting to Sheila Feldman, vice president of human resources. Mr Ziegler, who joined Arch in 2002 as director of internal audit, most recently served as senior vice president of sales and administration of Arch Coal Sales.

Arch also announced that it will open a London sales office in the first quarter of 2012.

Arch Coal is a top five global coal producer and marketer, with 179 million tons of coal sold pro forma in 2010. It is the most diversified American coal company, with operations across every major US coal supply basin.