Alpha Natural Resources will buy Foundation Coal for about $1.4 billion, the companies announced Tuesday, creating one of the nation's largest coal producers.
Foundation shares jumped 27 percent in premarket trading, or $6.26, to $29.50. Alpha shares fell 34 cents to $28.52.
A number of large coal companies have said that they are scouting for acquisitions, including Alpha, as the industry wrestles with weak demand.
The all-stock buyout of Foundation, assuming $530 million in debt, is valued at about $2 billion by the companies. The combined company would have had pro forma revenue of $4.2 billion last year.
The companies would control 59 coal mines and 14 preparation plants and have combined reserves of more than 2.3 billion tons of coal, making the combined entity the nation's third largest producer.
Alpha, based in Abingdon, Va., was itself the target of a takeover last year, but the proposed $2.7 billion offer by Cliffs Natural Resources was scuttled in November as the recession worsened.
