CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - Bill Raney, the president of the West Virginia Coal Association since 1992, is retiring effective Jan. 1.
Chris Hamilton, the Charleston-based trade association’s longtime senior vice president, will replace Raney as president.
“Bill Raney is an icon to those of us that have worked in and around the mining industry and to many throughout the state of West Virginia,” said Heath Lovell, the association’s board chairman. “His passion for, and contributions to this industry over his professional career are unsurpassed.”
Raney joined the West Virginia Mining and Reclamation Association in 1977, serving as its vice president until 1992, when he was named president of the Coal Association. The two groups merged in 2000.
After graduating from West Virginia University, Raney was hired as a state surface mine inspector and later was promoted to assistant chief of the Division of Reclamation.
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