Dubbed the Excellence in Safety award, it was presented by the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety.

Arch president John Eaves said he felt very honored that West Elk had been recognised for owning the safest underground mine in Colorado.

“We're honored to receive three statewide awards for operating responsibly in Colorado,” Eaves said.

“Our employees clearly recognize the importance of supplying safe, responsible, life-enabling and world-developing energy.”

West Elk boasts a Mine Safety and Health Administration total incidents rate of 1.7 per 200,000 employee-hours, 68% lower than the national underground average of 5.28 incidents.

In addition to the safety recognition, West Elk was also recognised by the CDRMS for its environmental practices associated with its new $27 million coal preparation plant.

The CDRMS also awarded Ark Land Company with an Excellence in Reclamation award for its exceptional treatment of US Bureau of Land Management lands during exploration and subsequent reclamation.

Mountain Coal and Ark Land are both subsidiaries of Arch Coal.

West Elk is located in Somerset, Colorado.

The colliery employs more than 375 workers and produced about 6 million tons of low sulphur coal in 2011.

Arch, among the world’s top five coal producers and marketers, sold 155Mt in 2011 and currently holds more than 20 active mining complexes in every major US coal supply basin.