| This article is part of the Global Coal Mine Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor. |
| Sub-articles: |
| Related-articles: |
Belle Ayr Coal Mine is an operating coal mine in Gillette, Wyoming, United States.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Mine Name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Belle Ayr Coal Mine | Gillette, Wyoming, United States | 44.09744, -105.42811 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the coal mine:
Project Details
Table 2: Project status
| Status | Status Detail | Opening Year | Closing Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating[1] | – | 1972[1] | – |
Table 3: Operation details
| Capacity (Mtpa) | Production (Mtpa) | Year of Production | Mine Type | Mining Method | Mine Size (km2) | Mine Depth (m) | Workforce Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | 13.75292005[2] | 2023[2] | Surface | Open Pit | 26.5 | 75* | 269[2] |
Table 4: Coal resources and destination
| Total Reserves (Mt) | Year of Total Reserves Recorded | Total Resources (Mt) | Coalfield | Coal Type | Coal Grade | Primary Consumer/ Destination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 141 | – | – | Powder River Basin | Subbituminous | Thermal | – |
Table 5: Ownership and parent company
| Owner | Parent Company | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Eagle Specialty Materials LLC[3][4][4][5] | Eagle Specialty Materials LLC [100%] | USA |
Table 6: Historical production (unit: million tonnes per annum)
| ROM or Saleable | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROM[6] | 15[7] | 18[8] | 10[9] | 11[10] | 14[11] | 14[12] | 13[6] |
Note: The above section was automatically generated and is based on data from the Global Coal Mine Tracker April 2024 release and the September supplement.
Background
Belle Ayr Mine is a coal mine, operated by Eagle Specialty Materials (ESM), an affiliate of FM Coal, LLC (FM Coal), producing 18.4 million short tons per annum, near Gillette in Campbell County, Wyoming, United States. The Belle Ayr Mine is a coal mine located in the state of Wyoming in the United States, about 18 miles southeast of Gillette in the Powder River Basin. The mine is an open pit, "truck and shovel" operation producing low-sulphur coal.[13]
In 2007, the mine produced just over 26.6 million short tons of coal, making it the 7th-most productive coal mine in the United States.[14] The following year, production had increased to 28.7 million tonnes.[15]
The mine was formerly owned and operated by Foundation Coal.[13] In late 2017, Foundation sold this mine, together with Eagle Butte Mine, to Blackjewel LLC, a company owned by Jeff Hoops, an Appalachian coal mining magnate. As of February 2019, Blackjewel owed Campbell County (where the mine is located) $8.6 million in taxes. The mine's permits have also been held up because of Blackjewel's record of environmental violations in its Appalachian operations.[16][17] As of May 2019, the Wyoming Environmental Quality Council was delaying approval of the mine's transfer permit to Blackjewel, due to the company's environmental violations.[18]
The mine is currently owned and operated by Eagle Specialty Materials.[19]
- MSHA ID: 4800732
- Operator: Eagle Specialty Materials (ESM)
- Owner: FM Coal, LLC (FM Coal)
- Location: Campbell County, Wyoming, United States
- GPS Cooridnates: 44.098376, -105.365477
- Production (short tons): 18,467,405 (2018)[20]
- Coal Type: Subbituminous
- Mining Method: Surface
- Equipment:
- Number of Employees: 282
- Mineable Reserve: 155 million tons permitted [21]
- Mine Status: Operating
Opposition
Environmental groups sue BLM over coal leases in Wyoming
It was announced on August 23, 2011 that three environmental groups are suing the Bureau of Land Management over the agency's decision to allow Alpha Natural Resources to mine a tract at the Caballo Mine containing 130.1 million tons of coal for $143.4 million along with one other lease the BLM approved, including the Belle Ayr Mine tract which contains 130.1 million tons of coal and is operated by Peabody Energy. WildEarth Guardians, Sierra Club and Defenders of Wildlife. The groups contended the BLM did not properly conduct its assessment of the environmental impacts of the proposed operation.
The groups contend that the coal from the tracts is enough to fuel 152 coal-fired power plants and would release 643 million tons of carbon dioixide, or the same amount as that released by 111.7 million passenger vehicles a year, using EPA calculations.[22]
Articles and Resources
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of world coal mines, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Mine Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20240218065342/https://www.campbellcountywy.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12212023-3323?packet=true. Archived from the original on 18 February 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 https://web.archive.org/web/20240213175031/https://www.msha.gov/data-and-reports/statistics/mine-employment-and-coal-production. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20240723051711/https://pemining.com/belle-ayr. Archived from the original on 23 July 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20240723051852/https://county17.com/2020/09/14/company-with-belle-ayr-eagle-butte-ties-files-for-bankruptcy/. Archived from the original on 23 July 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/ala-miner-fm-coal-files-for-chapter-11-bankruptcy-reorganization-60197013.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1O2I99G3lAqLb0N43F4T8Jy_ueLG-fJMm/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/18TrmkxiUZ64kHvTpfwFj7sxSLfbc-yi-/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WVcPoy7TWCAv1LaCQD5KBAMp3B08URzM/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Bwql2zs_vSTxfo_Eo0V1t4hX9wM412Q_/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PeXPu29xs9sz39QNgyE2H8RN2I9H7Kxu/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oXZXRbk_jtv5aCJ84YnRZJlKdlJSZJCc/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/10k8DenaAx8TGPA1SSAqHS-xSW4Y6Bqnz/view.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 13.0 13.1 Foundation Coal, "Foundation Coal: Operational Overviews", Foundation Coal website, accessed May 2009.
- ↑ U.S. Department of Energy, "Major U.S. Coal Mines, 2007", Energy Information Administration of the Department of Energy, September 2008,.
- ↑ Foundation Coal Holdings, "2008 Annual Report", Foundation Coal, page 11.
- ↑ Eagle Butte and Belle Ayr coal mine owner owes $8.6 million in delinquent taxes, Casper Star Tribune, 25 Feb. 2019.
- ↑ Eagle Butte and Belle Ayr Coal Mine Owner Delinquent $8.6 Million in Taxes, Mining Connection, 26 Feb. 2019.
- ↑ EQC Delays Coal Permit to Consider Company Track Record, Oil City News, 23 May 2019.
- ↑ Greg Johnson, Komatsu wants ‘immediate’ permission to take shovels at Eagle Butte, Belle Ayr mines, Sheridan Press, May 8, 2020
- ↑ "EIA table 9 major US coal mines 2018" EIA.gov accessed June 2020
- ↑ John T. Boyd Company,Powder River Basin Coal Resource Cost Study, September 2011
- ↑ "Environmental groups sue BLM over coal leases in Wyoming" Jeremy Fugleberg, Casper-Star Tribune, August 24, 2011.
