[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 169 (Monday, August 31, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53844-53845]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-19105]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLMT921000-L51100000-GA0000-LVEME17CE500]


Notice of Lease Sale Coyote Creek Mining Company's Coal Lease-by-
Application NDM 110277, Mercer County, ND

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of coal lease sale.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that coal resources in lands in Mercer 
County, North Dakota, will be offered for competitive lease by sealed 
bid in accordance with the provisions of the Mineral Leasing Act of 
1920, as amended.

DATES: The lease sale will be held at 10 a.m. Mountain Time on October 
1, 2020. Sealed bids must be received by the Bureau of Land Management 
(BLM) Montana State Office Cashier on or before 9:30 a.m., September 
17, 2020.

ADDRESSES: The lease sale will be held in the Main Conference Room of 
the BLM Montana State Office, 5001 Southgate Drive, Billings, Montana 
59101-4669. Sealed bids must be submitted to the Cashier, BLM Montana 
State Office, at this same address. Social Distancing and limited 
seating will be applied during the sale due to Covid-19.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joel Hartmann, by telephone at 406-
200-3554, or by email at [email protected]. Persons who use 
telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay 
Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to contact Mr. Hartmann during normal 
business hours. The FRS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to 
leave a message or question. You will receive a reply during normal 
business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This sale is being held in response to a 
lease-by-application filed by Coyote Creek Mining Company (CCMC). These 
tracts are located in Mercer County, North Dakota, southwest of Beulah, 
North Dakota. The Federal coal resources to be offered are located in 
the following described lands:

[[Page 53845]]

Fifth Principal Meridian, North Dakota

T. 143 N., R. 89 W.,
    Sec. 24, SW1/4;
    Sec. 26, SE1/4.

    The areas described aggregate 320.00 acres.

    The coal in the tracts has one minable coal bed, which is 
designated as the Upper Beulah coal seam. This seam on average is 
approximately 9.4 feet thick. The tracts are adjacent to CCMC's current 
mining operations and contain approximately 5.23 million tons of coal. 
The coal quality in the Upper Beulah coal seam is as follows:

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British Thermal Unit (BTU)..............................  6,879 BTU/lbs.
Moisture................................................          36.94%
Sulfur Content..........................................           7.33%
Ash Content.............................................            1.0%
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    The tracts 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 (FMV) of the tract. The minimum bid 
for the tract is $100 per acre or fraction thereof. The minimum bid is 
not intended to represent FMV. The authorized officer will determine if 
the bids meet FMV after the sale.
    The sealed bids should be sent by certified mail, return receipt 
requested, or be hand delivered to the Public Room, BLM Montana State 
Office (see ADDRESSES), and clearly marked ``Sealed Bid for NDM-110277 
Coal Sale--Not to be opened before 10 a.m. on October 1, 2020.'' The 
Public Room representative will issue a receipt for each hand-delivered 
bid. Bids received after 9:30 a.m. will not be considered. If identical 
high bids are received, the tying high bidders will be requested to 
submit follow-up sealed bids until a high bid is received. All tie-
breaking sealed bids must be submitted within 15 minutes following the 
sale official's announcement at the sale that identical high bids have 
been received.
    Prior to lease issuance, the high bidder, if other than the 
applicant, must pay the BLM the cost recovery fee in the amount of 
$133,600.57, in addition to all processing costs incurred by the BLM 
after the date of this sale notice (43 CFR 3473.2(f)).
    A lease issued as a result of this offering will require payment of 
an annual rental of $3 per acre, or fraction thereof, and a royalty 
payable to the United States of 12.5 percent of the value of coal mined 
by surface methods.
    Bidding instructions for the tracts offered and the terms and 
conditions of the proposed coal lease are included in the Detailed 
Statement of Lease Sale, with copies available at the BLM Montana State 
Office (see ADDRESSES). Documents for case file NDM-110277 are 
available for public inspection at the BLM Montana State Office Public 
Room.

(Authority: 43 CFR 3422.3-2)

John J. Mehlhoff,
Montana State Director.
[FR Doc. 2020-19105 Filed 8-28-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-DN-P