FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For Details, Contact:

Becki Dale, Communication Specialist

Phone: (307) 685-6146

Spring Cree= k Coal Company receives Montana Governor’s safety award

Gillette, Wyoming, September 10, 2004 - Spring Creek Coal Company (SCC), owned and operated by Kenne= cott Energy of Gillette,= Wyo., was awarded the 2004 Montana Governor’s Award for safety and health in the workplace Sept. 9 at the 2004 GovernorR= 17;s Conference.

The award recognizes employers who have made outstanding achievements in improving workplace safety and health in their individual companies. In addition to statistical information regarding illness or injury, the award is also base= d on management leadership and employee involvement, worksite analysis, hazard prevention, hazard control and safety and health training.

“Per= sonal commitment to safety by each and every Spring Creek employee was the key re= ason Spring Creek received the 2004 Montana Governor’s Safety Award,” said Clayton Walker, manager of SCC. “It is this commitment to safety that makes Spring Creek such a great place to work.”

Kennecott = Energy Company, headquartered in Gillette, Wyoming, provides approximately six percent of the = nation’s electricity and is one of the largest compliance coal producers in the United States. Affiliated with the Rio Tinto group of companies who are leaders in finding, extracting and processing mineral resources, Kennecott Energy is among the safest and most efficient energy producers in the world and operates five western U.S. coal mines: Antelope, Cordero Rojo, Jacobs Ranch, Spring Creek= in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming and Montana, as well as the Colowyo Coal Company in Colorado. Holdings also include a 50/50 joint venture interest in Decker Coal, a Montana coal producer.