Licensing and mine engineering activities are progressing, and the initiative is subject to permitting and regulatory approval. The Gateway project is among a number of strategic growth initiatives that reflect the power of Peabody’s global platform and leading reserve base. In Australia, the company is expanding six mines to serve significant Asian demand growth, and in the United States, Peabody is ramping up operations at the Bear Run mine in Indiana and increasing production at the El Segundo mine in New Mexico, the first new coal mine developed in the state in 20 years.
Gateway has earned multiple state and national honors for safety, sustainability and good neighbor practices. Recently, the mine was recognized as the state’s safest underground operation at the 2009 Illinois Mining Institute Awards of Excellence, and it is the only mine in Illinois ever to earn the Bronze “Good Neighbor” Award, one of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s highest honors for community leadership.
Located in Randolph County near Coulterville, Ill., Gateway employs a workforce of more than 200 and shipped 3.2 million tons of coal to customers throughout the Midwest in 2009. The mine drives significant economic progress, annually injecting more than $64 million in direct and implied economic benefits into the Southern Illinois economy. Gateway is among a portfolio of Midwestern U.S. operations that shipped more than 32 million tons this past year.
