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West Elk Mine <br />minable coal reserves in these leases occur in two of the six seams (the E and B Seams). The <br />northern B Seam reserves have been mined and the E Seam will continue to be mined as <br />projected on Map 51. The Past and projected B sesam mining is shown mon Map 52. <br />MCC mined in the F Seam from 1982 to 1991 from Lease D-044569 and C-0117192. This <br />mining was only marginally successful. Poor mine roof conditions, sandstone channels, thin <br />coal, poor coal quality, and other unfavorable conditions negatively affected mining and <br />rendered this seam uneconomic under past and present market conditions. <br />Approximately 180 feet below the F Seam horizon lies the E Seam. Approximately 400 feet <br />below F Seam and 200 feet below E Seam lies the B Seam. The northern mineable B Seam <br />reserves contain some areas of coal, particularly in Federal Leases C-0117192, COC -54558, and <br />COC -56447 where no mineable E Seam exists above the B Seam. As such, B Seam mining in <br />this area causes no issues for E Seam. Recovering the two economically viable seams at West <br />Elk Mine requires thorough evaluation of various mining scenarios. The mineable areas of the E <br />and B Seams can be seen by comparing Map 13 (B Seam thickness) with Map 18 (E Seam <br />thickness). E and B Seam projected operations, maximizing the recovery of reserves, are shown <br />on Maps 51 and 52, respectively. <br />MCC has assessed the recoverable coal reserves of the Federal coal leases contained in the E and <br />B Seams. MCC's 2004 Budget Plan includes 91.9 million tons of recoverable reserves in the E <br />and B Seams (Table 28). <br />The mine plan was laid out to recover as much coal as possible with consideration for personnel <br />and equipment safety and surface protection. The percent of recovery in the development (room <br />and pillar) sections is approximately 40-60 percent, more or less, depending upon pillar design. <br />Longwall panel extraction methods increase that extraction ratio to 80-90 percent for the mining <br />height, which is planned at approximately 12.0 feet for the B Seam and 8.0 to 14.0 feet for the E <br />Seam. The overall recovery of the mine layout has not been calculated, because it varies <br />continuously with changes in mine plans. <br />205-4 Rev. 11/04- PRI 1, 03/06- PRI 0. 05/15- TR137 <br />Table 28 <br />Estimate of Recoverable Coal Reserves at the West Elk Mine <br />Recoverable Reserves (millions of tons <br />Lease <br />Lease Lease Lease Lease Lease Other <br />Seam <br />COC -56447 <br />COC -54558 D-044569 C-0117192 C-1362 West Flat Fee Lease <br />Iron <br />Total <br />B <br />22.4 <br />0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2.3 3.0 <br />27.7 <br />E <br />0.2 <br />0.0 .03 0.0 58.1 0.0 7.9 <br />66.2 <br />Total <br />1 22.6 <br />0.0 .03 0.0 58.1 2.3 10.9 <br />93.9 <br />Note: Recoverable reserves are based on the 2004 Budget Plan with West Flat Iron LBA and without Dry Fork LBA . <br />The mine plan was laid out to recover as much coal as possible with consideration for personnel <br />and equipment safety and surface protection. The percent of recovery in the development (room <br />and pillar) sections is approximately 40-60 percent, more or less, depending upon pillar design. <br />Longwall panel extraction methods increase that extraction ratio to 80-90 percent for the mining <br />height, which is planned at approximately 12.0 feet for the B Seam and 8.0 to 14.0 feet for the E <br />Seam. The overall recovery of the mine layout has not been calculated, because it varies <br />continuously with changes in mine plans. <br />205-4 Rev. 11/04- PRI 1, 03/06- PRI 0. 05/15- TR137 <br />