ARLP

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P.

We are a diversified producer and marketer of coal primarily to major United States (“U.S.”) utilities and industrial users. We began mining operations in 1971 and, since then, have grown through acquisitions and internal development to become what we believe to be the fifth largest coal producer in the eastern U.S. At December 31, 2009, we had approximately 647.2 million tons of coal reserves in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. In 2009, we produced 25.8 million tons of coal and sold 25.0 million tons of coal, of which 10.1% was low-sulfur coal, 22.5% was medium-sulfur coal and 67.4% was high-sulfur coal. In 2009, we sold 91.8% of our total tons to electric utilities, of which 88.6% was sold to utility plants with installed pollution control devices. These devices, also known as scrubbers, eliminate substantially all emissions of sulfur dioxide. We classify low-sulfur coal as coal with a sulfur content of less than 1%, medium-sulfur coal as coal with a sulfur content between 1% and 2%, and high-sulfur coal as coal with a sulfur content of greater than 2%.

We operate nine underground mining complexes in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, and West Virginia. We are constructing a new mining complex in West Virginia, and we also operate a coal loading terminal on the Ohio River at Mt. Vernon, Indiana. Our mining activities are conducted in three geographic regions commonly referred to in the coal industry as the Illinois Basin, Central Appalachian and Northern Appalachian regions. We have grown historically, and expect to grow in the future, through expansion of our operations by adding and developing mines and coal reserves in these regions.

ARLP is a Delaware limited partnership listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “ARLP.” ARLP was formed in May 1999 to acquire, upon completion of ARLP’s initial public offering on August 19, 1999, certain coal production and marketing assets of Alliance Resource Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“ARH”), consisting of substantially all of ARH’s operating subsidiaries, but excluding ARH. ARH was previously owned by current and former management of the ARLP Partnership. In June 2006, our special general partner, SGP, and its parent, ARH, became wholly-owned, directly and indirectly, by Joseph W. Craft, III, the President and Chief Executive Officer and a Director of our managing general partner. SGP, a Delaware limited liability company, holds a 0.01% general partner interest in each of ARLP and the Intermediate Partnership.

We are managed by our managing general partner, MGP, a Delaware limited liability company, which holds a 0.99% and 1.0001% managing general partner interest in ARLP and the Intermediate Partnership, respectively. AHGP is a Delaware limited partnership that owns and is the controlling member of MGP. AHGP completed its initial public offering (“AHGP IPO”) on May 15, 2006 and is listed on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “AHGP.” AHGP owns, directly and indirectly, 100% of the members’ interest of MGP, a 0.001% managing interest in Alliance Coal, the incentive distribution rights (“IDR”) in ARLP and 15,544,169 common units of ARLP.