A federal judge approved a plan for coal company Cloud Peak Energy to exit bankruptcy yesterday, bringing the Wyoming-based company one step closer to resolving a chapter 11 case that began in May, the Casper (Wyo.) Star Tribune reported. Though the bankruptcy court accepted the company’s disclosure statement and plan during a confirmation hearing Thursday, Cloud Peak Energy still has additional steps to take before the case can officially close. The Wyoming coal operator owned three Powder River Basin mines — Antelope and Cordero Rojo in Wyoming and Spring Creek in Montana — and owed about $400 million in outstanding debt when it filed for bankruptcy in May. After filing its petition, the publicly traded company turned to the auction block. It sold off its most valuable assets: the three Powder River Basin coal mines. A Navajo Nation-based coal firm secured the winning bid for the mines and began operating them in October. In purchasing the three coal mines, Navajo Transitional Energy Company also assumed $94 million in pre- and post-petition debts left behind by Cloud Peak Energy.
