Usibelli Coal Mines

Circling Usibelli

On a map of Alaska, my eyes are drawn to the glaciers and fjords, coastlines, and dramatic topography. The only thing that stood out about Usibelli was the coal mines. Coal mines?

This was a trek to look at coal. Coal in the ground, coal being dug up, and the landscapes left behind...MORE

In 1943, Usibelli Coal Mine Inc. was founded by Emil Usibelli in order to provide coal to the precursor of Fort Wainwright. The mines that Usibelli operates take advantage of abundant subbituminous coal near the surface in the Healy area, including some seams over 40' thick. Over the years the family-owned Usibelli has expanded its operations and currently employs about 95 people and produced around 2 million tons of coal in 2010. All of the mining operations at Usibelli are strip mining operations, in which vegetation, soil and rock ("overburden") are removed and then the coal is mined in open pits.  The removal of overburden is accomplished with the help of a giant electric dragline nicknamed "Ace-in-the-Hole" which moves up to 7 million cubic yards of overburden per year.

Since 1971 Usibelli has been the only company actively mining coal in Alaska. They currently operate in the Nenana Coal Field, south of Fairbanks, and hold active permits for four sites in this area; Poker Flats (no longer mined and largly reclaimed), Gold Run Pass (idle, and under partial reclamation), Two Bull Ridge (active), and Rosalie Mine (inactive). In addition, Usibelli holds leases and permits for two additional mines. One is only a few miles north of their existing operations, and would extract coal from the region near the old Jumbo Dome mine.  Usibelli is currently building an access road to this site. The other is at Wishbone Hill, located 40 miles NE of Anchorage, which would be the first Usibelli mine outside the Nenana Coal Field.  In early 2010, Usibelli announced plans to begin exploratory drilling in this area.  In addition, they have announced that a Japanese power company "J-Power" would most likely purchase all the coal that would come from Wishbone Hill.

Of the coal currently produced by Usibelli, about half is exported via a coal dock in Seward to South Korea, Japan, and Chile, while the remainder is consumed within Alaska. In total, coal provides energy for less than 10% of the electricity used in Alaska (compared to 50% for the United States as a whole). Over half of the Usibelli coal burned in Alaska is used by the military. Usibelli coal is used in the Fairbanks area by Fort Wainwright, Eielson Air Force Base, Clear Air Force Station, Aurora Energy LLC (0wned by Usibelli), University of Fairbanks (UAF), and a Golden Valley Electric Association (GVEA) "mine mouth" plant in Healy. Lastly, a small percentage of the coal is destined for retail use within Alaska through the North Pole Coal Excavation company.

Usibelli Coal: Where does Usibelli's coal go after it's mined? (2009)

FULL FIGURE

Usibelli was the coal supplier and a financial partner in the defunct Healy Plant #2 project. Negotiations are underway to reopen this plant in the near future. Usibelli has also been involved with the proposed Emma Creek Power Plant project which would be located near the Jumbo Dome mine as well as a nearby proposal for a coal-to-liquids plant.

Active coal mining at Two Bull Ridge

Machinery pulls coal out of Two Bull Ridge coal mine.

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Latest News

As of July 2010, Usibelli was hoping to receive permits from the state to explore nearby deposits for coalbed methane but after several letters of concern the DNR is reviewing the preliminary decision.  In December 2010, a lawsuit was filed against the DNR regarding the decision.

Date Created: Mon, 19 Apr 2010 16:45:11 -0800

Last Modified: Mon, 7 Mar 2011 04:14:37 -0900