BEULAH – The Bureau of Land Management is conducting a lease sale that will award 320-acres of federal coal adjacent to the existing Coyote Creek Mine in Mercer County, southwest of Beulah.

The proposed lease tracts are within the current mine planning area and contain an estimated 5.23 million tons of federal coal.

“We’re very excited about this project,” said Donato Judice, Deputy State Director for Energy, Minerals and Realty for the Montana/Dakotas State Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). “By working together, the BLM and OSMRE (Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Reinforcement) are able to significantly reduce the time and effort it takes to go from an application to lease federal coal to issuing a Federal Mine Permit.”

The BLM is the leasing authority for all federal coal reserves under the Mineral Leasing Act 1920.

The lease sale will be held at the BLM Montana State Office on Oct. 1 at 10 a.m. All members of the public are invited to attend. Social distancing will be practiced, and limited seating will be available due to COVID-19.

Approval of Coyote Creek Mining Company (CCMC)’s application to lease the federal coal resources will maintain America’s energy independence and directly preserve 115 jobs at the Coyote Creek Mine. It would also preserve three positions at the Bismarck office, and 82 at the Coyote Creek Power Station, which the mine supplies with coal for power generation. CCMC’s operation also supports an estimated 591 indirect jobs that are dependent on the mining operation.

“I am glad to see the Bureau take this much-needed action to give Coyote Creek access to federal coal within their property,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer. “These lease sales support mining jobs and provide critical revenues and resources to the local community. I will be monitoring the sale on October 1st and hope it leads to good news for North Dakota’s coal producers.”

Sen. John Hoeven, a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said, “We appreciate BLM working to make these federal resources available, which will help support jobs and economic growth in the region. This lease sale will enable access to federal coal reserves located within the Coyote Creek Mine and allow for the development of this critical energy resource, while providing a benefit to taxpayers.”