Navajo Transitional Energy Company Marks the First-Ever Return of Land Leased for Coal Mining Back to the Navajo Nation

Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren and Nation Representatives Commemorate the Historic Event with a Traditional Navajo Blessing at the Navajo Mine Hogan

FARMINGTON, N.M.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Navajo Transitional Energy Company (NTEC) is proud to announce the return of a 2,211-acre parcel of Navajo land first leased for mining in 1957. This is an historic event since no other mining company has previously fully reclaimed coal mine land to today’s standards to allow for its proper release from Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) jurisdiction back to the Navajo Nation. The parcel is located at the north end of NTEC’s Navajo Mine, within the Nenahnezad Chapter of the Navajo Nation and close to Farmington and Shiprock, NM. NTEC and the Navajo Nation celebrated this momentous event with a traditional blessing at the Navajo Mine hogan today. Navajo Nation President Dr. Buu Nygren, as well as Navajo Council delegates from the Resources and Development Committee, officials, and citizens from the Nenahnezad chapter were also on hand for the event.

The land was originally leased from the Navajo Nation to Utah Mining and Construction Company in 1957 for mining coal. The 2,000+ acre parcel being returned today was where mining operations first commenced over 60 years ago. Active mining operations ended many years ago and beginning in 2004, the Nenahnezad Chapter requested the return of the land from BHP Billiton, who owned the mine at the time. However, disagreements over the applicable reclamation standards to be used on the land stalled efforts between agencies for approval of the surrender. Some of the lands were considered “pre-law,” meaning that there were no reclamation standards in place when active mining was completed. Interim Guidelines governed other parts of the land, while the rest remained undisturbed.

Both the Navajo Nation and the Nenahnezad Chapter asked NTEC to make the return of this parcel of land a priority at the time NTEC took over Navajo Mine in 2013. As a Navajo-owned company, NTEC is committed to restoring mined lands for our communities, and protecting the land, water, air, and wildlife. At that time, only limited reclamation work had been done on the pre-law lands, and the work that had been done was found to be “inconsistent and often unacceptable” by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. To ensure the land was reclaimed and returned to the Nation as intended, NTEC brought together representatives from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Navajo Nation Minerals Department, and Nenahnezad Chapter to review the reclamation status up to that point.

To eliminate any disagreements related to reclamation standards, NTEC took the unprecedented step of volunteering to reclaim the entire parcel to the interim reclamation standard - regardless of when the parcel had been mined and consistent with the reclamation standard of surrounding lands. This meant that NTEC had to commit considerable expense, time, and resources to re-start the entire reclamation process. To meet the interim reclamation standards, NTEC had to extensively regrade the entire parcel and plan proper drainage channels to manage future runoff. Permanent animal habitat structures and native grasses had to be established and then irrigated for at least 2 years to ensure the parcel met what is referred to as the “suitable for grazing” standard.

Today, NTEC returned the land to the Navajo Nation at the NTEC Navajo Mine Hogan after completing one last critical step in the process - a traditional Navajo blessing to commemorate the land being returned. President Buu Nygren attended the historic event. “This is a positive step by NTEC. I now look forward to BIA’s swift action in releasing the land back to the Navajo Nation. I am confident that BIA will move quickly so that the first ever release of formerly mined land back to the Navajo Nation will be accomplished under my Administration,” he said.

“NTEC is honored to return this land to the Navajo Nation and its people. We believe in doing what is right and creating multi-generational solutions. We proudly support the sovereignty of the Navajo Nation over its own natural resources and take our commitment to reclamation seriously. With more than 26 thousand acres of land reclaimed to date, NTEC leads reclamation efforts throughout the industry. This is a legacy we are extremely proud of,” said Vern K. Lund, Chief Executive Officer for NTEC.

About NTEC

Navajo Transitional Energy Company (NTEC) is a world-class, diversified energy company with a unique purpose and vision. Established by the Navajo Nation to exercise sovereignty over its abundant natural resources, NTEC has grown rapidly and now has a sizeable and successful portfolio of mining, energy generation, and helium assets. NTEC is committed to achieving multi-generational, clean energy solutions that ensure the continued prosperity of the Navajo Nation while providing essential power to the entire Southwest and beyond.

NTEC was recognized with the Sentinels of Safety award from the National Mining Association, and the Safety Award for Large Surface Mine from the Rocky Mountain Coal Institute in 2022, and the OSMRE National Award for Excellence in Surface Mining Reclamation in 2024, 2022, and 2020. For more information, visit www.navenergy.com.