EXHIBIT 99.1

     NATURAL RESOURCE PARTNERS L.P. DECLARES INITIAL QUARTERLY DISTRIBUTION
                AND NAMES ROBERT T. BLAKELY TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS


HOUSTON, Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Board of Directors of GP Natural
Resource Partners LLC, general partner of Natural Resource Partners L.P. (NYSE:
NRP), declared an initial prorated cash distribution of $0.4234 per unit payable
on February 14, 2003 to both common and subordinated unitholders of record on
February 3, 2003.

This distribution is equivalent to a full quarter minimum distribution of
$0.5125 prorated for the period from October 17, 2002, the date of closing of
the initial public offering of common units, through December 31, 2002, the end
of the quarter. This distribution equates to an annualized distribution of $2.05
per unit.

Natural Resource Partners L.P. also announced today that Robert T. Blakely has
been elected to the Board of Directors of GP Natural Resource Partners LLC, the
general partner of Natural Resource Partners.

Mr. Blakely is President of Performance Enhancement Group and previously served
as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Lyondell Chemical,
as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Tenneco, Inc. and as
a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley. He recently completed a four year term on
the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council and currently serves as a
trustee of Cornell University where he serves as Chairman of Cornell's Finance
Committee and as a member of the Executive Committee of the Board.

Corbin J. Robertson, Jr. chairman and chief executive officer said, "We are very
pleased to have Bob Blakely join our board. His extensive financial and business
experience including several major acquisitions and divestitures will
significantly benefit Natural Resource Partners as we continue to grow the
partnership."

Natural Resource Partners L.P. is headquartered in Houston, TX, with its
operations headquarters in Huntington, WV. NRP is a master limited partnership
that is principally engaged in the business of owning and managing coal
properties in the three major coal producing regions of the United States:
Appalachia, the Illinois Basin and the Powder River Basin. For additional
information, please contact Kathy Hager at 713-751-7555 or khager@nrplp.com .
Further information about NRP is available on the partnership's website at
http://www.nrplp.com .

This press release may include "forward-looking statements" as defined by the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Such statements are those concerning the
annualized distribution. All statements, other than statements of historical
facts, included in this press release that address activities, events or
developments that the partnership expects, believes or anticipates will or may
occur in the future are forward-looking statements. These statements are based
on certain assumptions made by the partnership based on its experience and
perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future
developments and other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances.
Such statements are subject to a number of assumptions, risks and uncertainties,
many of which are beyond the control of the partnership. These risks include,
but are not limited to, decreases in demand for coal; changes in operating
conditions and costs; production cuts by our lessees; commodity prices;
unanticipated geologic problems; changes in the legislative or regulatory
environment and other factors detailed in Natural Resource Partners' Securities
and Exchange Commission filings. SOURCE Natural Resource Partners L.P.

CONTACT: Kathy Hager of Natural Resource Partners L.P., +1-713-751-7555, or
khager@nrplp.com