COAL MINECoal

Sheerness (humalite)

Westmoreland · Humalite soil amendment since 2021; coal closed

7,000 ha under reclamation.

RESOURCE CONTEXT

Huge Plains subbituminous endowment with no domestic market; Coalspur Vista exports 7–8 Mt/yr

Domestic coal power ended in 2024; the remaining market is seaborne export from Vista and Coal Valley.

Coal reserves, all ranks (dated)33 Gt (2016 figure, not updated) · Remaining established reserves · 2016AER ST98 2016 infographic ↗
Vista / Obed coalfield resource1,322 Mt · Resource estimate · 2024Global Energy Monitor ↗

GEOLOGICAL SETTING

Plains subbituminous coal (Ardley / Horseshoe Canyon)Highly favourable
Flat-lying Paleocene–Upper Cretaceous coal zones at shallow depth

Tenure: Coal lease (existing leases only; new Crown leases paused).
Royalty: Bituminous 1 % pre-payout / 1 % + 13 % net post-payout; subbituminous C$0.55/t.

DATASETS TO STACK HERE

Bedrock geology of Alberta (Map 600 tiles)Alberta Geological SurveyWhich formation is at the bedrock surface: the first screen for outcropping targets such as silica sand, limestone, ironstone, bentonite, ammonite shell and shallow coal.
Bedrock geology polygons (DIG 2013-0018, queryable)Alberta Geological SurveyAttribute-level bedrock mapping for screening host lithologies; heavy, so it loads only when zoomed in.
Sediment (drift) thickness above bedrockAlberta Geological SurveyOverburden cost for open-pit targets and the depth of cover that geophysics must see through.
AGS prospective areas for mineral explorationAlberta Geological SurveyThe survey's own view of where each commodity is prospective; compare with the Atlas knowledge-driven envelopes.
NRCan Map 900A: producing mines, mineral areas, oil & gas fieldsNatural Resources CanadaOfficial federal view of producing operations to cross-check the Atlas mine inventory.
Coal mine boundaries (Alberta Energy)Alberta Energy and MineralsWhere coal has been or is being mined; coal-zone geology itself is published in AGS reports, not as a service.
Coal Development Policy (1976) categories 1–4Government of AlbertaCategory 1 = no exploration; Category 2 = no open pit. The decisive constraint for metallurgical coal.
Coal agreementsAlberta Energy and MineralsExisting coal rights are the only route to a new mine under the Coal Industry Modernization Initiative.

NEARBY OPERATIONS

Steveville helium plantHelium · Keranic Industrial Gas (ex-Royal Helium) · ≈81 kmIdled
E3 Lithium — Clearwater (Bashaw District)Lithium brine · E3 Lithium · ≈139 kmPilot / demonstration
Metiskow / Horseshoe Lake sodium sulphateIndustrial mineral · Alberta Sulphate (historic) · ≈140 kmClosed (recent)
Alberta Carbon Trunk Line / CliveCCS hub · Wolf Midstream / Enhance Energy · ≈151 kmOperating
E3 Lithium — GarringtonLithium brine · E3 Lithium · ≈169 kmExploration
Dodds Coal Mine (Ryley)Coal mine · Dodds Coal Mining · ≈203 kmOperating