St. Louis - February 22, 2001 - Arch Coal, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) announced today that it has completed a primary offering of 5,170,797 shares of stock at a sale price of $19 per share. The offering was conducted in conjunction with a secondary offering by Ashland Inc., in which Ashland sold its remaining 4,756,968 shares of Arch stock.

The net proceeds of the primary offering, after the underwriter's discount, totaled $93.2 million. The entire amount will be used to pay down debt.

"We view this transaction as a very positive development for the corporation and its shareholders," said Steven F. Leer, Arch Coal's president and chief executive officer. "The price of Arch Coal stock has risen substantially in recent weeks, and the secondary offering by Ashland Inc. created an excellent opportunity for Arch to issue a small number of primary shares for the purpose of raising capital to pay down debt. We believe that strengthening our balance sheet is one of the best means available to create value for our shareholders."

Arch Coal is the nation's second largest coal producer, with subsidiary operations in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Wyoming, Colorado and Utah. Through these operations, Arch provides the fuel for approximately 6% of the electricity generated in the United States.