Cordero Rojo Mine

The Cordero Rojo Mine is a coal mining complex located in the state of Wyoming in the United States, in the Powder River Basin. The mine is and open pit mine and employs several dragline excavators. Two coal-processing facilities are located on-site, and crushed coal is shipped by rail to electric utility customers in the south and west of the United States. The mine employs between 430 and and 540 people.

The mining complex is wholly owned by Cloud Peak Energy, a company in which Rio Tinto has a 48.3% stake. (Cloud Peak Energy was spun-off in 2008 from Rio Tinto's wholly owned subsidiary Rio Tinto Energy America.

The Cordero Rojo Mine was formed in 1997 from the consolidation of two previously existing mines, the Cordero mine (purchased by Rio Tinto in 1993) and the Caballo Rojo mine (purchased in 1997). The mine produced between 34 and 36 million tons of coal per year in the years 2004 to 2006, and over 40 million tons of coal in 2007, making the Cordero Rojo that year's third-highest producer of coal in the United States.

In May 2012 it was announced that Cloud Peak Energy was to face state and federal violations after blasters earlier in the month ignited an explosion that was more than three times its intended size.

Cloud Peak Energy to ship more Powder River Basin coal to Asia
In June, 2011 Cloud Peak Energy signed a 10-year deal to ship basin coal to Asia from a port on Canada’s Pacific Coast. Cloud Peak Energy Inc. signed the deal with Westshore Terminals to ship coal through its Westshore Terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company shipped 3.3 million tons of coal through the terminal to Asian customers in 2010. Cloud Energy operates the Antelope Coal Mine, Cordero Rojo Mine, Spring Creek Mine and Decker Mine in the Powder River Basin.

Mine Data

 * MSHA ID:	4800992
 * Owner: Cordero Mining Company
 * Parent company: Cloud Peak Energy
 * Location: Wyoming, near Gillette
 * GPS coordinates: 44.11, -105.36
 * Production: 40,467,627 short tons
 * Coal Type:	Bituminous
 * Mining Method:	Surface
 * Mine Status:	Active
 * Average No. of Employees:	 589

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