Kellow to succeed Boyce as next chief executive of coal-mining Peabody Energy

Coal-mining Peabody Energy Corp. soon will have a new chief executive.

The St. Louis-based company announced Thursday that Peabody's chief operating officer, Glenn Kellow, will succeed CEO Greg Boyce on May 4.

Boyce had held that job since 2006 and will stay on as the company's executive chairman of the board.

Kellow joined Peabody in 2013 from mining company BHP Billiton, where he had spent 28 years and served as president of its aluminum and nickel businesses.

Peabody also said Thursday that Kellow has been named to the company's board.

Peabody is the world's biggest private-sector coal producer. Its U.S. operations include mines in Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Illinois, and Indiana.