Blackjewel LLC

The agreement is subject to approval by Contura's board of directors and U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Virginia.

The auction, originally scheduled for Thursday, will take place 11 a.m. EDT Aug. 15 in New York.

Blackjewel Attorney Stephen Lerner said Contura is the only company that has shown willingness to finance Blackjewel's assets.

On Monday, a Kansas utility company alleged that Blackjewel has not been providing it with adequate coal supplies to generate electricity.