GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) – Subsidiaries of Rhino Energy LLC are seeking approvals to expand a coal mine north of Fruita and open a bigger operation nearby.
The company once mined about 280,000 tons of coal annually from the McClane Canyon Mine for the Cameo Power Plant. The mine closed after the plant shut down.
McClane Canyon Mining LLC is now seeking Bureau of Land Management approval to lease 320 more acres so it could produce 500,000 tons of coal a year.
Another Rhino subsidiary, CAM-Colorado LLC, is seeking BLM approval to lease 11,600 acres east of the mine for the proposed Red Cliff Mine. Rhino hopes to open a mine producing 6 million to 8 million tons of coal a year and employing 200 to 250 people.
