Alaska's only operational coal mine, Usibelli is a third-generation family business

Q. Where is Usibelli Coal Mine located?

A. It is located in Healy, Alaska, at mile 249 of the Parks Highway in the Alaska Mountain Range. The headquarters and maintenance shop complex is a three-story building on mine property situated east of the Nenana River at the mouth of Hoseanna Creek. Poker Flats Mine is to the south and Two Bull Ridge is to the north at Hoseanna Creek. The entrance to Denali National Park is about 10 miles south of Healy on the Parks Highway. The company also maintains an office in Fairbanks.

Q. What year was the company founded, who founded it, and what was its original name?

A. Emil Usibelli, an Italian immigrant who came to Alaska in 1935, began the company in 1943 as Usibelli Coal Mine. Mining actually began in the early 1900s in an area known as Suntrana. Coal seams were highly visible and Alaska pioneers tunneled directly into the coal seams to secure fuel for steam-driven riverboats and railroads.

Q. Who heads up your company and who is on its senior management team?

A. Joseph E. Usibelli, Emil's son, is chairman of the board of directors. Joe Usibelli Jr., grandson of Emil Usibelli, is president of Usibelli Coal Mine Inc.

Q. What is the company's primary business sector? What products does the company offer?

A. UCM provides clean burning Alaska coal to six Interior Alaska power plants (including three military sites) and exports to destinations on the Pacific Rim. The coal is used to create steam for electrical power generation and for space heat. UCM coal averages approximately 0.2 percent sulfur, which is extremely low, making it very marketable throughout the Pacific Rim. It has an average value of 7,800 British thermal units per pound - if 7,800 matchsticks were tied together and lit, that would be the equivalent amount of energy created from a pound of Usibelli coal.

Q. How many employees does your company have? How many in each of its locations?

A. UCM has approximately 90 employees in Healy and operates an office in Fairbanks consisting of five employees.

Q. Describe your essential equipment in general terms. Purchases planned?

A. "Ace in the Hole" is the centerpiece of operations at the mine. The all-electric Bucyrus Erie 1300 W walking dragline removes overburden above the seams of coal. UCM utilizes a variety of dozers, excavators, drills, graders and trucks. The primary haul truck used for moving coal and overburden is the Caterpillar 785 which is capable of transporting 150-ton payloads.

Q. Is your company expanding any of its operations and/or locations? If yes, please describe expansion and reasons for it.

A. UCM has been in Poker Flats for 25 years. We're now in Two Bull Ridge. It was no small feat for the dragline to walk a distance of 2-1/2 miles from Poker Flats to Two Bull Ridge. It walked approximately 13,175 feet and took a total of 2015 steps in 29.3 hours of walking for an average of 1.1 minutes per step. One dragline step equaled 6.5 feet. This is information we figured readers couldn't live without.

The next generation of mining will be in Jumbo Dome Mine. We have more than 200 years of economically mineable coal on current leases.

Q. What is your company's main strength, i.e. its edge over the competition?

A. We're conveniently located on the Railbelt of Alaska and have a well-established infrastructure with railroad and highway. Also, the Golden Valley Electric Association electrical intertie runs adjacent to the mine. Usibelli's subbituminous C coal has less than two tenths of one percent sulfur content, making it one of the lowest sulfur content coals in the world.

Q. What new markets, clients and/or projects did your company attract in the last year?

A. This August the Panamax vessel MV Coral Sapphire departed Seward loaded with 73,000 metric tons of Usibelli coal bound for a power plant in Mejillones, Chile. Since initial test shipments to Chile in 2004, we have exported more than 250,000 metric tons to three utilities operating power plants along the west coast of Chile. We look forward to being a long-term fuel supplier.

Q. Has the company invested in any new technology in the last two years?

A. We have an interesting new piece of equipment called an On-Line Analyzer. The analyzer is positioned above the coal conveyor belt and provides minute-by-minute quality analysis and a cumulative average ash and sulfur content of the coal. Additional quality characteristics including Btu and moisture are statistically calculated. The Analyzer provides accurate information which is valuable to mining operations and to our customers.

Q. What are the biggest obstacles to completing work the company undertakes?

A. Most people think the weather conditions and relatively remote location in Healy would be a tremendous challenge; however, they are not an impediment to our mining operations. It's a good thing, because our customers' requirements increase during the cold, dark winter months. UCM operates 24/7/365 and is proud to provide a quality product, in the right quantity, and on schedule.

Q. What do you see as future trends or opportunities for your company from events such as long-term weather fluctuations, resource development, etc.?

A. That's an interesting question. Consider: Fifty percent of U.S. coal resources are in Alaska, 50 percent of electrical power generation in the Lower 48 states is created by coal, and coal is generally the lowest-cost electrical power. So there's plenty of room to add coal to the electrical energy mix of Alaska industries and communities.

Q. Does Usibelli have an anniversary or other landmark eve coming up?

A. Usibelli Coal Mine will celebrate its 65th Anniversary during the summer of 2008. No plans yet for celebrating it, but we have plenty of time to think about it.

Q. What is the average length of time employees stay with the company? Do you plan to hire additional employees in the next year?

A. The average length of employment in the current workforce is 15 years, and the average age is about 44. More than 33 percent of the workforce is second- or third-generation. During summer 2006, there were summer hire employees that are fourth-generation family members. People really enjoy working at UCM so the turnover is low and hiring actions are relatively infrequent. However, we have recently had a few requirements for maintenance workers and electricians.

Q. What is the company's safety record?

A. We achieved our all-time safety record during 2004-2006 of 797 consecutive days with no lost-time injuries. Collectively, Usibelli's 95 employees have experienced relatively low severity and low frequency of accidents during the past five years.

More than two years without a lost time injury is outstanding, especially considering the challenging conditions in which we work every day, at the same time maintaining an impressive on-time delivery schedule to our customers. This record was accomplished while producing 1.5 million tons of coal each year. It could only have happened with a very professional, dedicated workforce, great leadership and outstanding teamwork.

Q. Does Usibelli Coal Mine maintain a website?

A. The company website is http://www.usibelli.com.