Jul 14, 2015 2 min read

Consol Energy Inc. Tuesday said it will eliminate 470 positions throughout the company.

Brian Aiello, Consol’s director of communications said in an e-mail the Southpointe-based producer of coal and natural gas, is eliminating 290 positions from its natural gas and corporate areas, with another 180 being cut from its coal division. He said notifications to affected employees were ongoing Tuesday afternoon.

“We continually evaluate our workforce based on current and anticipated activity levels,” Aiello said in a statement. “These are very difficult but prudent decisions given the depressed nature of commodity prices. We are taking aggressive action so that Consol can continue to operate from a position of strength through the downturn and quickly capitalize on the up-cycle when it occurs.”

The cuts follow 165 positions eliminated in April from the company’s natural gas and corporate departments, which it said at the time was a little more than 4 percent of its workforce.

In June, Consol said it would end retiree benefits for some 4,400 former employees by the end of 2015, a move it had previously planned for by 2019.

The cuts are similar to those occurring elsewhere in the energy industry, particularly among coal and natural gas companies that are dealing with lower prices for both commodities.