
The Alpha Metallurgical Resources CEO learned the business through budgets, deals and a changing coal market. His story also takes an unexpected detour through Alabama basketball shoes.
An Appalachian miner built its business around a demanding customer: the steel furnace. Its advantage depends on getting the right coal blend all the way from the seam to the ship.
From moving a headquarters closer to the mines to steering Peabody through debt repayment and a difficult Australian ramp-up, James Grech has made a career of working on the clock. Now the coal executive has a succession date of his own.