| Cordero Rojo | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| State | Wyoming |
| Country | United States |
| Owner | |
| Company | Rio Tinto Energy America (Rio Tinto Group) |
| Year of acquisition | 1993 / 1997 |
| Production | |
| Products | Coal (40,000,000 tons per annum) |
The Cordero Rojo Mine is a coal mining complex located in the state of Wyoming in the United States, in the coal-rich Powder River Basin. The mine is of open pit construction 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.[1][2] The mine employs between 430[1] and 540[2] people.
The mining complex is wholly owned by the giant mining company Rio Tinto Group, thru its subsidiary Rio Tinto Energy America. It 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).[1] The mine produced between 34 and 36 million tons of coal per year in the years 2004 to 2006,[1] 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.[3]