El Hatillo Coal Mine
| This article is part of the Global Coal Mine Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor. |
| Sub-articles: |
| Related-articles: |
El Hatillo Coal Mine (Mina El Hatillo) is an operating coal mine in Cesar, Colombia.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Mine Name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| El Hatillo Coal Mine | Cesar, Colombia | 9.629849, -73.560634 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the coal mine:
Project Details
Table 2: Project status
| Status | Status Detail | Opening Year | Closing Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating | – | – | – |
Table 3: Operation details
| Capacity (Mtpa) | Production (Mtpa) | Year of Production | Mine Type | Mining Method | Mine Size (km2) | Mine Depth (m) | Workforce Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | 1.08[1] | 2022[1] | Surface[2] | Open Pit[2] | 96.38[3] | 50.0* | 458.0[1] |
Table 4: Coal resources and destination
| Total Reserves (Mt) | Year of Total Reserves Recorded | Total Resources (Mt) | Coalfield | Coal Type | Coal Grade | Primary Consumer/ Destination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28.0[4] | 2021[4] | – | – | Subbituminous | Thermal | – |
Table 5: Ownership and parent company
| Owner | Parent Company | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Colombia Natural Resources | Key Industries | Colombia |
Table 6: Historical production (unit: million tonnes per annum)
| ROM or Saleable | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROM[5] | – | – | 3.6[6] | – | – | 1.08[1] | – | – | – |
Note: The above sections were automatically generated and are based on data from the Global Coal Mine Tracker May 2026 release.
Ownership Tree
This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.
Background
El Hatillo Coal Mine (Mina El Hatillo) is an operating open-pit coal mine located in the Cesar coal basin in northern Colombia, near the municipalities of El Paso and La Jagua de Ibirico. The mine forms part of Colombia’s main thermal coal-producing region, which also includes major operations such as Drummond’s La Loma complex and the Prodeco mines.
El Hatillo is operated by Colombian Natural Resources (CNR). CNR described El Hatillo as an open-pit mine operated under Mining Title 147-97, covering approximately 9,638 hectares in Cesar Department.[7]
Combined proven and probable reserves for El Hatillo and the adjacent La Francia mine were estimated at 28 million tonnes of low-sulphur coal as of 2021.[8]
CNR operated an integrated logistics system, including participation in the FENOCO railway concession. CNR’s rail operations were capable of transporting up to 10 million tonnes of coal per year between its mines and port facilities.[9] Coal from the El Hatillo mine was transported by rail to the Caribbean coast for export, including through Glencore’s Puerto Nuevo terminal.[10]
Environmental Issues
In May 2010, Colombia's Ministry of Environment concluded that particulate matter emissions from coal mining had severely affected the health and quality of life of residents in three communities near the Cesar mining corridor — El Hatillo, Plan Bonito, and Boquerón — and ordered the mining companies Drummond, Prodeco, CNR, and Vale Coal to resettle these populations under Resolution 0970. The resettlement deadline of September 2012 was not met. In March 2011, the Ministry imposed a written reprimand on the companies for failure to hire a resettlement operator; the Health Secretariat of Cesar department concurrently documented unsafe water and a prevalence of respiratory, skin, and eye diseases affecting 51.48% of El Hatillo's population. After drawn-out negotiations, the companies agreed to a Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) for El Hatillo in 2018. CNR's subsequent bankruptcy complicated its resettlement obligations, and as of 2022–2023 CNR was still implementing individual resettlement for 197 El Hatillo families with support from consultancy firm Insuco.[11][12][13]
Articles and Resources
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of world coal mines, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Mine Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 https://www.radioguatapuri.com/noticias/13496.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://cnrcol.co/operacion-minas/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://cnrcol.co/en/operacion-minas/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 https://www.coalage.com/departments/breaking-news/investment-firm-acquires-cnr-in-colombia/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://www.argusmedia.com/en/news-and-insights/latest-market-news/2130535-colombian-coal-firm-cnr-halts-production.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ (PDF) https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/media/files/myb3-2019-colombia.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "Mining operation". https://cnrcol.co/. 2026. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ "Investment Firm Acquires CNR in Colombia". Coal Age. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Mining operation". https://cnrcol.co/. 2026. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ "Colombian fund buys CNR, eyes 2mn t coal output by 2022". https://www.argusmedia.com/. August 31, 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ "El Hatillo, the Tense Struggle to Not Breathe Coal". Tierra de Resistentes. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "What Will Happen to Cesar, Colombia When the Mines Leave?". NACLA. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Individual resettlement process for the El Hatillo community (phase 2)". Insuco. Retrieved March 26, 2026.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
