Energy West Dodges $115 Million Pension Plan Withdrawal Price

Energy West Mining Co. escaped a bill of more than $115 million for withdrawing from a multiemployer pension plan, the result of a ruling from a federal appeals court in Washington.

The actuary who incorrectly calculated Energy West’s pension liability failed to base his assumptions on the actual characteristics of the United Mine Workers of America 1974 Pension Plan, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said in its ruling Friday.

Energy West’s withdrawal liability would have been about $40 million if the actuary had used a rate based on the plan’s historic investment performance, the ...