[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 229 (Tuesday, November 30, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69618-69619]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-26448]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[WY-920-1320-EL, WYW150210]


Notice of Competitive Coal Lease Sale Reoffer, WY

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

[[Page 69619]]


ACTION: Notice of Competitive Coal Lease Sale Reoffer.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that certain coal resources in the NARO 
North Tract described below in Campbell County, WY, will be reoffered 
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 reoffer will be held at 10 a.m., on Wednesday, 
December 29, 2004. Sealed bids must be submitted on or before 4 p.m., 
on Tuesday, December 28, 2004.

ADDRESSES: The lease sale reoffer will be held in the First Floor 
Conference Room (Room 107), 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: Mavis Love, Land Law Examiner, or 
Robert Janssen, Coal Coordinator, at 307-775-6258, and 307-775-6206, 
respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This coal lease sale reoffer is being held 
in response to a lease by application (LBA) filed by Powder River Coal 
Company of Gillette, WY. The NARO North Tract was previously offered on 
August 31, 2004, and the one bid received at that sale was rejected 
because it did not meet the BLM's estimate of fair market value. The 
coal resources to be reoffered consist of all reserves recoverable by 
surface mining methods in the following-described lands located in 
southeastern Campbell County approximately 6 miles east of State 
Highway 59, 10 miles south of State Highway 450, and adjacent to the 
Piney Canyon and Antelope County Roads:

T. 42 N., R. 70 W., 6th PM, Wyoming
    Sec. 28: Lots 5-16;
    Sec. 29: Lots 5-16;
    Sec. 30: Lots 9-20;
T. 42 N., R. 71 W., 6th P.M, Wyoming
    Sec. 25: Lots 5-15;
    Sec. 26: Lots 7-10;
    Sec. 35: Lots 1, 2, 7-10, 15, 16.

    Containing 2,369.38 acres, more or less.

    The tract is adjacent to Federal and State of Wyoming coal leases 
to the south held by the North Antelope Rochelle Mine. It is also 
adjacent to additional unleased Federal coal to the east, north, west, 
and southwest.
    All of the acreage offered has been determined to be suitable for 
mining. Features such as the county roads and pipelines can be moved to 
permit coal recovery. Numerous 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 the future production from these wells. An 
economic analysis of this 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 the 
North Antelope Rochelle Mine and the United States.
    The tract contains surface mineable coal reserves in the Wyodak 
seam currently being recovered in the adjacent, existing mine. On the 
tract, the Wyodak seam is generally a single seam averaging about 77 
feet thick. A small area in the northeast corner of the LBA has a split 
off the bottom of the main seam. This split starts at about 17 feet 
thick but thins rapidly to the east. The interburden increases to about 
15 feet thick at the eastern edge of the LBA. The overburden depths 
range from about 290 to 365 feet thick on the LBA.
    The tract contains an estimated 324,627,000 tons of mineable coal. 
This estimate of mineable reserves includes the main Wyodak seam and 
split mentioned above, but does not include any tonnage from localized 
seams or splits containing less than 5 feet of coal. It does not 
include the State of Wyoming coal, although these reserves are expected 
to be recovered by the NARO mine. The total mineable stripping ratio 
(BCY/Ton) of the coal is about 3.9:1. Potential bidders for the LBA 
should consider the recovery rate expected from thick seam and multiple 
seam mining.
    The NARO North LBA coal is ranked as subbituminous C. The overall 
average quality on an as-received basis is 9090 BTU/lb with about 0.25% 
sulfur and 2.4% sodium in the ash. These quality averages place the 
coal reserves at the top 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 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, December 28, 2004, 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, 
WYW150210, are available for inspection at the BLM Wyoming State 
Office.

Phillip C. Perlewitz,
Acting Deputy State Director, Minerals and Lands.
[FR Doc. 04-26448 Filed 11-29-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-22-P