Notice of Federal Competitive Coal Lease Sale, Greens Hollow Tract, Utah (Coal Lease Application UTU-84102), 55226-55227 [2016-19727]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Land Management

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 160 (Thursday, August 18, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55226-55227]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-19727]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[16XL1109AF-LLUT922300-L13200000-EL0000, UTU-84102 24-1A]


Notice of Federal Competitive Coal Lease Sale, Greens Hollow 
Tract, Utah (Coal Lease Application UTU-84102)

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the United States Department of 
the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Utah State Office, will 
offer the Federal coal resources described below as the Greens Hollow 
Tract (UTU-84102) for competitive sale by sealed bid, in accordance 
with the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as amended, and the applicable 
implementing regulations. The sale tract is located in Sanpete and 
Sevier Counties, Utah.

DATES: The lease sale will be held at 1:00 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time, 
on September 22, 2016.
    Sealed bids must be sent by certified mail, return receipt 
requested, to the Collections Officer, BLM, Utah State Office, or be 
hand-delivered to the BLM public room Contact Representatives, BLM Utah 
State Office, at the address indicated below, and must be received on 
or before 10:00 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time, on September 22, 2016.
    Any bid received after the time specified will not be considered 
and will be returned. The BLM Contact Representatives will issue a 
receipt for each hand-delivered, sealed bid. The outside of the sealed 
envelope containing the bid must clearly state the envelope contains a 
bid for Coal Lease Sale UTU-84102, and is not to be opened before the 
date and hour of the sale.

ADDRESSES: Sealed bids must be mailed to the Collection Officer or 
hand-delivered to the BLM public room Contact Representative at BLM, 
Utah State Office, 440 West 200 South, Suite 500, Salt Lake City, Utah 
84101-1345. The opening of the sealed bids will take place at the Salt 
Lake City Public Library, 210 East 400 South, Salt Lake City, Utah at 
1:00 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Jeff McKenzie, 440 West 200 
South, Suite 500 Salt Lake City, Utah 84101-1345 or telephone 801-539-
4038. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 
to leave a message or question for the above individual. The FIRS is 
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Replies are provided during 
scheduled business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This Coal Lease Sale is being held in 
response to a lease by application submitted by Ark Land Company (Ark). 
That application was assigned by Ark to Canyon Fuel Company, LLC, a 
subsidiary of Bowie Resource Partners, LLC. The assignment was 
effective September 1, 2013 and was approved by the BLM on July 1, 
2014. The coal resources to be offered consist of all recoverable 
reserves available in the lands identified below. These lands are 
located in Sanpete and Sevier Counties, Utah, approximately 10.5 miles 
west of Emery, Utah, under surface lands managed by the Manti-La Sal 
and Fishlake National Forests. Those lands are described as follows:

Salt Lake Meridian, Sevier County, Utah

T. 20 S., R. 4 E.,

    Sec. 36, lot 4, E\1/2\NE\1/4\, NE\1/4\SE\1/4\.
T. 21 S., R. 4 E.,
    Sec. 1;
    Sec. 2, SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 11, E\1/2\, E\1/2\W\1/2\;
    Sec. 12, NE\1/4\, W\1/2\, W\1/2\SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 13, W\1/2\NE\1/4\, NW\1/4\;
    Sec. 14, NE\1/4\, E\1/2\NW\1/4\.
T. 21 S., R. 5 E.,
    Sec. 6.

Salt Lake Meridian, Sanpete and Sevier Counties, Utah

T. 20 S., R. 5 E.,
    Sec. 19, lots 5 thru 8, E\1/2\SW\1/4\, SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 20, S\1/2\;
    Sec. 21, W\1/2\SW\1/4\;
    Sec. 28, W\1/2\;
    Sec. 29, 30, and 31;
    Sec. 32, N\1/2\, N\1/2\S\1/2\;
    Sec. 33, NW\1/4\NW\1/4\.

    The area described contains 6,175.39 acres.

    The coal in the Greens Hollow Tract has one minable coal bed, which 
is designated as either the Upper Hiawatha or the Lower Hiawatha seam. 
These seams are approximately 11 feet in thickness. The coal beds 
contain approximately 55.7 million tons of recoverable high-volatile C 
bituminous coal. The ``as received basis'' coal quality in the Upper 
Hiawatha coal bed is: 11,565 Btu/lb., 7.46 percent moisture, 9.81 
percent ash, 36.55 percent volatile matter, 46.1 percent fixed carbon, 
and 0.55 percent sulfur. The ``as received basis'' coal quality in the 
Lower Hiawatha coal bed is: 11,538 Btu/lb., 7.21 percent moisture, 9.69 
percent ash, 38.88 percent volatile matter, 43.85 percent fixed carbon, 
and 1.26 percent sulfur.
    Pursuant to the applicable regulations, the Greens Hollow Tract may 
be leased to the qualified bidder (as established at 43 CFR subpart 
3472) that submits the highest cash bonus bid that is equal to or 
exceeds the Fair Market Value (FMV) for the tract as determined by the 
authorized officer after the sale. The BLM has prepared its fair market 
value estimate for the tract, which estimate has been reviewed by the 
Department of Interior's Office of Valuation Services.
    The Department of the Interior has established a general minimum 
bid of $100 per acre or fraction thereof for the tract. The minimum bid 
is not intended to represent the FMV, and a tract will not be sold 
unless the bid received meets or exceeds BLM's FMV estimate. The lease 
that may be issued as a result of this offering will provide for 
payment of an annual rental of $3 per acre or fraction thereof, and a 
royalty of 8 percent of the value of the coal produced by underground 
mining methods. The value of the coal for royalty purposes will be 
determined in accordance with 30 CFR part 1206, subpart F. This coal 
lease application (UTU-84102) is not subject to case-by-case processing 
fees pursuant to 43 CFR 3473.2(f). However, the successful bidder must 
pay to the BLM the cost BLM incurs regarding the publishing of this 
sale notice. If there is no successful bidder, the applicant will be 
responsible for all publishing costs.
    The required detailed statement under 43 CFR 3422.2 for the offered 
tract, including bidding instructions and sale procedures under 43 CFR 
3422.3-2, and the terms and conditions of the proposed coal lease, is 
available from BLM, Public Room (Suite 500), Utah State Office, 440 
West 200 South, 5th Floor, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101-1345. All case 
file documents and written comments submitted by the public on FMV, 
except those portions identified as proprietary by the author and 
meeting exemptions stated in the Freedom of Information Act, are 
available for public inspection during normal business hours in the BLM 
Public Room (Suite 500).
    The actions announced by this notice are consistent with the 
Department of the Interior Secretarial Order 3338, which allows for a 
lease sale to be held and lease to be issued for a pending application 
where the environmental impact statement under the National

[[Page 55227]]

Environmental Policy Act had been completed and a Record of Decision 
had been issued by the BLM or applicable surface management agency 
prior to the issuance of the Order. Here the BLM held a public hearing 
and requested comments on the Environmental Impact Statement, Maximum 
Economic Recovery, and the FMV of the Greens Hollow Tract on May 6, 
2009. The Governor of the State of Utah recommended proceeding with 
this lease sale on May 26, 2011.
    The United States Forest Service prepared a Final Supplemental 
Environmental Impact Statement, and signed a Record of Decision and a 
consent to lease on October 5, 2015, prior to the issuance of Order 
3338. The BLM signed a Record of Decision to hold the lease sale on 
August 12, 2016.

    Authority:  43 CFR 3420.1

Jenna Whitlock,
Acting State Director.
[FR Doc. 2016-19727 Filed 8-17-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-DQ-P