Hat Creek

Highlights

History & Background of Hat Creek

In the Hat Creek Valley, a massive coal deposit was discovered in 1877 by Dr. George Mercer Dawson during his surveying work for the Dominion of Canada and the Canadian Pacific Railway.

The coal deposit is 26 kilometers long,
4 kilometres wide, and 1200 meters thick.

Among the world’s thickest coal reserves, it holds about 10 billion tonnes, with over 700 million tonnes of both sub-bituminous B and lignite coal. For reference the largest operating coal mine, North Antelope Rochelle, is just over 1.7 billion estimated tonnes.

The deposit underwent drilling, open pit engineering, extensive metallurgical and environmental assessments, and test coal mining by BC Hydro in the late 1970s, followed by a feasibility study conducted by the Cominco-Monenco Joint Venture for BC Hydro & Power Authority, completed in 1979.

Project Stats

Discovery Date: 1877

Location:
Hat Creek Valley

200 km NE of Vancouver, BC
24 km E of the town of Lillooet, BC.
30km W of Cache Creek, BC on Hwy 99

GPS Coordinates:
N 50°46.261’
W 121°35.765’
Altitude: 916 m./3,005 ft.

Historical Spend:
$130m over 25 years(unadjusted for inflation, approx. $240m in 2024)

Inferred Resources: 10b t

Clean Energy Project Status: Under Review

Location

Hat Creek Project deposits are located 200 kilometers northeast of Vancouver, BC and approximately 24 kilometers due east of the town of Lillooet, BC.

(Click on map to enlarge)

Property Advantages

Resource & Production Advantages:

Extensive coal reserves of 5 to 10+ gt for syngas production and exploiting stranded resources.
A significant resource of lignite to sub-bituminous B coal exists in a graben, 26km long and 4km wide.
Tertiary rocks in the graben contain a coal member that is 1200m thick, of which up to 550m is coal.
The deposit contains a resource of about 10b tonnes, of which approximately 500m tonnes is proven reserve.

Infrastructure & Location Benefits:

Proximity to essential infrastructure: rail, power, highways, and natural gas.
Isolated location away from large populations, with Enbridge’s gas transmission station at Savana, BC nearby, BC Hydro power transmission lines supporting carbon-free power generation, Rail, Highway 99 and the Port of Vancouver (~300km away).
An optimal 80-acre industrial site, the Burrard Generation Plant in Port Moody, BC, is a mothballed bunker fuel power plant with rail access, adjacent to the Westcoast Pipeline terminal, enabling transportation of natural gas and potentially hydrogen, and featuring nearby shipping infrastructure linked to global markets.

Environmental & Economic Benefits:

Reduced environmental impact with net-zero carbon capture and superior flue gas desulphurization.
Production of low or zero-carbon products like hydrogen, MeOH, and polymers promotes cost efficiency and high economic returns.

Collaboration & Scaling Opportunities:

Collaboration opportunities with major utilities like BC Gas and Enbridge, including joint ventures with BC Hydro and other Westcoast utilities.
Ability to scale investment for higher rates of carbon-free hydrogen and power, with the potential for significant discounts on resource acquisition.

In-situ Combustion-Gasification (ISCG) or Underground Coal Gasification

ISCG is an appealing alternative to traditional mining techniques that converts coal in the ground into gas products, known as synthesis gas or “syngas”.
The process reduces costs and hazards linked to mining, transportation, and surface gasification.
Using a combined cycle power plant fueled by hydrogen, along with pre-combustion capture and sequestration, results in net-zero CO2 emissions compared to traditional coal-fired plants with post-combustion CO2 capture.
Syngas can be used to manufacture high-value products such as carbon free hydrogen, ammonia and fertilizer feedstocks, FT liquids & waxes, methanol, plastics, or clean electricity.
ISCG has been successfully implemented in Alberta, Canada, Eastern Europe/Russia, the United States, China, Australia, & other countries.