Major Electric Power Company in the Northwestern U.S. Contracts With America West Resources to Supply Up to $175 Million in Compliant Coal From Horizon Mine

SALT LAKE CITY, Dec. 9, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- America West Resources, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: AWSR), a domestic compliant coal producer with mining operations in Central Utah, today announced that it has entered into a Coal Purchase and Sale Agreement with a major electric power company in the northwestern United States.  

The five-year base agreement, valued at approximately $40 million in base tons and up to an additional $27 million in optional tons, provides for America West to supply compliant thermal coal mined from its Horizon operations and delivered pursuant to a predetermined monthly shipping schedule beginning in 2011 and continuing through the end of 2015.  However, among other terms and conditions, the major electric power company will have the option to extend the agreement up to seven additional years, thereby increasing the total potential value of the deal to a total of up to $175 million.

"With this agreement now in hand, we have secured sales of up to $400 million for delivery of our compliant coal over the next five years, and total potential sales of almost $500 million over the next decade," stated Dan Baker, Chief Executive Officer of America West Resources.  "Expansion is our key focus now.  It is going to be necessary to more than double our current workforce over the next two years, increasing from 80 miners to approximately 160 miners.  Moreover, with more than three miles of underground highway now developed within Horizon and a well-defined mining plan that provides for ramping our production to as much as five million tons per year upon implementing our longwall mining strategy, we believe we are ideally positioned to begin fully optimizing our coal assets and are well on our way to establishing America West as a major U.S. coal producer."

About America West Resources, Inc.

Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, America West Resources is an established domestic coal producer focused on the mining of compliant (low-sulfur) coal and its sale primarily to utility companies and industrial customers in the western U.S., China and Europe. The Company operates the Horizon Mine, which has recoverable, compliant, high BTU coal reserves.  For more information, please visit www.AmericaCoal.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements Please refer to the Company's Form 10-K and other filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") for additional information regarding risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the risk factors listed from time to time in such SEC reports.  Copies of these filings are available through the SEC's electronic data gathering analysis and retrieval system (EDGAR) at www.sec.gov.  The forward-looking statements in this release do not constitute guarantees of future performance.  Investors are cautioned that statements in this press release which are not strictly historical statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding current or future mining output, ability to obtain necessary equipment, personnel and permits to mine coal, production capabilities, management's strategy, plans and objectives for future operations, plans and objectives for production, plans and objectives for present and future production, plans and objectives for regulatory approval, and anticipated results, constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, including, without limitation, risks associated with coal production, mining in general and in our mines in particular, ability to achieve the coal output anticipated, ability to obtain permits, ability to hire and retain the necessary personnel,  as well as other risks detailed in our filings with the SEC.  We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking information contained in this press release or with respect to the announcements described herein.

SOURCE America West Resources, Inc.