[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 13 (Friday, January 18, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3479-3480]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-882]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WY-920-1320-EL, WYW155132]


Notice of Competitive Coal Lease Sale, Wyoming

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Competitive Coal Lease Sale.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that certain coal resources in the 
Eagle Butte West Coal Tract described below in Campbell County, WY, 
will be offered for competitive lease by sealed bid in accordance with 
the provisions of the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended (30 
U.S.C. 181 et seq.).

DATES: The lease sale will be held at 10 a.m., on Wednesday, February 
20, 2008. Sealed bids must be submitted on or before 4 p.m., on 
Tuesday, February 19, 2008.

ADDRESSES: The lease sale will be held in the First Floor Conference 
Room (Room 107C), of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Wyoming State 
Office, 5353 Yellowstone Road, P.O. Box 1828, Cheyenne, WY 82003. 
Sealed bids must be submitted to the Cashier, BLM Wyoming State Office, 
at the address given above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julie Weaver, Land Law Examiner, or 
Robert Janssen, Coal Coordinator, at 307-775-6260, and 307-775-6206, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This coal lease sale is being held in 
response to a lease by application (LBA) filed by RAG Coal West, Inc. 
RAG finalized the sale of the Eagle Butte Mine to Foundation Coal West, 
Inc., a directly held subsidiary of Foundation Coal Holdings, Inc. in 
August 2004. The coal resource to be offered consists of all reserves 
recoverable by surface mining methods in the following-described land 
located in northern Campbell County, approximately 4 miles north of 
Gillette and is crossed by U.S. Highway 14/16 along its eastern edge.

T. 51 N., R. 72 W., 6th P.M., Wyoming,
Section 19: Lots 13, 14, 19, and 20;

[[Page 3480]]

Section 20: Lots 10 (NW\1/4\ and S\1/2\) and 11through 15;
Section 29: Lots 1 (W\1/2\), 2 through 7, 8 (W\1/2\ and SE\1/4\), 
and 9 through 16;
Section 30: Lots 5, 6, 11 through 14, 19, and 20.

    Containing 1,427.77 acres more or less.

    The tract is adjacent to an existing Federal coal lease along the 
western boundary of the Eagle Butte Mine. It is adjacent to additional 
unleased Federal coal to the north, west, and south. All of the acreage 
offered has been determined to be suitable for mining since current 
plans include moving U.S. Highway 14/16. However, BLM has excluded 
approximately 80 acres along the northeastern portion of the tract from 
its economic analysis to provide a blasting buffer between the mining 
activity and existing residences. Other features such as pipelines, 
utilities, and Little Rawhide Creek can be relocated to permit coal 
recovery. In addition, oil and/or gas wells have been drilled on the 
tract. The estimate of the bonus value of the coal lease will include 
consideration of depletion and any future production from these wells. 
An economic analysis of any future income stream will determine whether 
a well is bought out and plugged prior to mining or re-established 
after mining is completed. The surface estate of the tract is owned by 
Foundation Coal West, Inc.
    The tract contains surface mineable coal reserves primarily in the 
Wyodak seam with minor additions from up to four lower splits. The 
Wyodak is generally mined as two separate seams, the Roland and the 
Smith, in the area and on the LBA. The total coal thickness ranges from 
about 95-115 feet thick with the overburden thickness ranging from 
about 250-450 feet thick on the LBA. The tract contains approximately 
255 million tons of mineable coal. This estimate of mineable reserves 
is primarily from the Roland and the Smith seams and does not include 
any tonnage from localized seams or splits containing less than 5 feet 
of coal. It does not include any tonnage from the existing, adjacent 
Federal coal lease although additional reserves are expected to be 
recovered in conjunction with the LBA once the highway is moved. The 
total mineable stripping ratio (BCY/Ton) of the LBA coal is about 
2.9:1. Potential bidders for the LBA should consider the recovery rate 
expected from multiple seam mining.
    The Eagle Butte West LBA coal is ranked as subbituminous C. The 
overall average quality on an as-received basis is 8434 BTU/lb with 
about 0.4% sulfur. These quality averages place the coal reserves near 
the lower end of the range of coal quality currently being mined in the 
Wyoming portion of the Powder River Basin.
    The tract will be leased to the qualified bidder of the highest 
cash amount provided that the high bid meets or exceeds the BLM's 
estimate of the fair market value of the tract. The minimum bid for the 
tract is $100 per acre or fraction thereof. No bid that is less than 
$100 per acre, or fraction thereof, will be considered. The bids should 
be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, or be hand 
delivered. The Cashier will issue a receipt for each hand-delivered 
bid. Bids received after 4 p.m., on Tuesday, February 19, 2008, will 
not be considered. The minimum bid is not intended to represent fair 
market value. The fair market value of the tract will be determined by 
the Authorized Officer after the sale. The lease issued as a result of 
this offering will provide for payment of an annual rental of $3.00 per 
acre, or fraction thereof, and of a royalty payment to the United 
States of 12.5 percent of the value of coal produced by strip or auger 
mining methods and 8 percent of the value of the coal produced by 
underground mining methods. The value of the coal will be determined in 
accordance with 30 CFR 206.250.
    Bidding instructions for the tract offered and the terms and 
conditions of the proposed coal lease are available from the BLM 
Wyoming State Office at the addresses above. Case file documents, 
WYW155132, are available for inspection at the BLM Wyoming State 
Office.

    Dated: January 11, 2008.
Larry Claypool,
Acting Deputy State Director, Minerals and Lands.
 [FR Doc. E8-882 Filed 1-17-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-22-P