Patriot Coal Corp.'s plan to withdraw from a multi-employer pension plan might cost it $959 million and harm retired miners and other companies, two contributors to the plan said, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. Energy West Mining Co. and Drummond Co. objected in court papers filed on Thursday to Patriot's proposal to stop contributing to the United Mine Workers of America 1974 Pension Plan. The 35 other contributing companies would have to absorb the costs, and the underfunded plan covering 90,000 retirees and spouses might fail, they said.
