HELENA, MT - Governor Greg Gianforte today released the following statement after Signal Peak Mine’s permit to continue mining coal at the Bull Mountain Mine was approved by the Trump Administration:

“Today’s approval of Signal Peak’s latest permit for the Bull Mountain Mine is a long-awaited victory for Montana coal miners. In the last four years under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, we witnessed an all-out war on American energy as they drug their feet and jeopardized our job-creating coal mines across the country. Without today’s action, our energy security and the jobs of 250 hardworking miners were at risk. I’m grateful to President Donald J. Trump and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum for recognizing the importance of increasing production of American-made energy to secure our energy future.

“Energy security is national security. The coal mined by Signal Peak will not only protect America’s energy independence, but will be a source of affordable, reliable energy for our allies, instead of forcing them to rely upon the enemies of Western Civilization to keep their lights on.”

Over the last 15 years in production, the Signal Peak Energy coal mine in Roundup has shipped over 100 million tons of coal, primarily to Japan. Last year, the company projected its risk of having to shut down at the end of 2025 after a federal judge blocked Signal Peak from beginning a 175-million-ton expansion to mine coal on federal land.

The action authorizes Signal Peak to recover approximately 22.8 million tons of federal coal and 34.5 million tons of adjacent non-federal coal, extending the life of the Bull Mountains Mine by up to nine years. The project is expected to generate over $1 billion in combined local, state and county economic benefits, including wages, taxes and business activity.

In April, Gov. Gianforte joined President Trump, miners, governors, members of Congress, and energy leaders as the president signed executive orders to restore coal production in the United States by lifting barriers to coal mining on federal land. The Signal Peak permit is the first in the country to be approved under the new executive orders.

Gov. Gianforte recently visited Signal Peak as part of his fifth annual 56 County Tour, where he heard how the Trump Administration has helped unleash the production of American-made energy. More information on the governor’s visit can be viewed here and a media package can be downloaded here.