Question-and-Answer Session
Yes, thank you. [Operator Instructions]. We will take our first question from Jim Rollyson with Raymond James.
Jim Rollyson - Raymond James
Good morning everyone. Congratulations, on a great quarter and outlook.
Steven F. Leer - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Thank you.
Jim Rollyson - Raymond James
Steve, I guess just circling back to do some simple math here; it looks like, based on your comments on the PRB side for pricing that you guys signed up during the quarter, if I just do this math $11.15, 50% higher. Here you are well north of $16 may be pushing $17 a ton for pricing for '08 and '09 on new contracts. Is that accurate?
Steven F. Leer - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Well, I haven't checked your math but, I'll trust that you are very good with the calculator.
Jim Rollyson - Raymond James
Steve, are you still at this stage getting obviously a premium to the kind of 14-type number we are seeing in spot?
Steven F. Leer - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Well we have a view that energy prices as a whole are under pressure on the upward side and that we will layer in prices, as when we start crossing numbers that give us appropriate returns that we think are available in the marketplace. And we think the PRB has moved but, just given past spikes in pricing that more is to come as we look at the marketplace and we look at the... what we think is availability of coal in other basins, as the PRB has a very attractive second half in front of us.
Jim Rollyson - Raymond James
Sure. Actually that brings up a great second follow-up question which would be volume growth. I think John mentioned a little bit ago that, you are looking at this to get pricing to generate returns, you guys are looking for. Otherwise you are willing to leave tons in the ground and if I recall correctly in the last quarter or two, you've kind of suggested you are not in a big hurry to bring up tremendous new volumes in the PRB, because pricing just simply hadn't really been there to justify those returns you are looking for. Do you think with where you are now and the prices you've got say this quarter that you're starting to get there or are you still expecting prices move higher before you actually get there?
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