According to the Energy Information Administration, preliminary coal production data for 2012 show that 9 out of the top 10 producing coal mines in the United States are located in Wyoming; the top two producing mines in Wyoming account for 20% of total U.S. coal production by tonnage. Collectively, the top 10 mines accounted for 38% of total U.S. coal production by tonnage in 2012. Shares of production by energy content for the top mines are somewhat lower since the sub-bituminous coal they produce has lower heat content per ton than bituminous coal produced in other regions.

All of the top 10 producing coal mines in the U.S. are sub-bituminous, surface mining operations, and each mine is located in the Powder River Basin. The lone mine in the top 10 not located in Wyoming is the Spring Creek Mine in Montana. The nation's top producing mine in 2012 was the North Antelope Rochelle Mine, which produced 108 million short tons, followed by the Black Thunder Mine, which produced 93.1 million short tons. Individually, each of these two mines produced more coal than the entire state of Kentucky (90.6 million short tons), which was the third largest coal producing state in 2012.