The Navajo Nation briefly shut down Spring Creek Mine, Montana's largest coal mine, last month over a dispute with the state about potential future lawsuits involving environmental regulations.
The mine in Decker reopened two-days later after the Navajo Transitional Energy Company (NTEC) and the state agreed to a 75-day interim agreement during which time they hope to work out their differences.
The NTEC said state officials wanted the company to fully waive any sovereign immunity it would have as a tribal entity before taking over operations of the mine, which employs nearly 300 people.
NETC chairman Tim McLaughlin said in a statement that the company has "done everything in our power" to assure state officials that it would operate under Montana laws but they cannot waive the rights that are preserved within their treaties.
The state claims it never sought a complete waiver, however.
"Without some limited waiver of that sovereign immunity, (Department of Environmental Quality) or the public may not be able to enforce state environmental laws against NTEC (Navajo Transitional Energy Company)," Department of Environmental Quality spokeswoman Rebecca Harbage said in a statement. "We're trying to figure out what that limited waiver would look like, so they can continue with full production and they are adhering to environmental laws."
The 8th largest coal mine in the U.S., Spring Creek produced almost 14 million tons of the fuel in 2017.
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