212114 Surface Coal Mining

Official definition

This U.S. industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in one or more of the following: (1) surface mining of bituminous coal, lignite, and anthracite coal; (2) developing bituminous coal, lignite, and anthracite coal surface mine sites; (3) surface mining and beneficiating (e.g., cleaning, washing, screening, and sizing) of bituminous coal, lignite, and anthracite coal; or (4) beneficiating (e.g., cleaning, washing, screening, and sizing), but not mining, bituminous coal, lignite, and anthracite coal.

Source: US Census Bureau, 2022 NAICS descriptions.

When to use a different code

Census classifies these close-sounding activities somewhere else. Businesses mainly engaged in:

• Underground mining and/or development of underground bituminous and anthracite coal mines are classified in U.S. Industry 212115, Underground Coal Mining.
• Providing support activities (except geophysical surveying and mapping, site preparation, construction, and transportation) for the mining of coal on a contract or fee basis are classified in U.S. Industry 213113, Support Activities for Coal Mining.
• Manufacturing coke oven products in coke oven establishments are classified in U.S. Industry 324199, All Other Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing.
• Manufacturing coal products in steel mills are classified in Industry 331110, Iron and Steel Mills and Ferroalloy Manufacturing.

Source: US Census Bureau, 2022 NAICS cross-references.

Activities listed under 212114

The Census index assigns these 17 activities to this code. If your business matches one, this is your code.

• Bituminous coal, lignite, or anthracite beneficiating (e.g., cleaning, crushing, screening, washing, sizing)
• Bituminous coal, lignite, or anthracite surface mine site development for own account
• Bituminous coal, lignite, or anthracite surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Brown coal mining and/or beneficiating
• Coal beneficiating plants (e.g., cleaning, crushing, screening, washing)
• Coal stripping (except on a contract, fee, or other basis)
• Coal, bituminous, lignite, or anthracite, surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Coal, brown, mining and/or beneficiating
• Culm bank recovery, bituminous coal, lignite, or anthracite (except on a contract basis)
• Hard coal (i.e., anthracite) surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Lignite surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Preparation plants, coal
• Semianthracite surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Semibituminous coal surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Strip mining, bituminous coal, lignite, or anthracite, on own account
• Subbituminous coal surface mining and/or beneficiating
• Tipple operation, bituminous coal mining and/or beneficiating

Source: US Census Bureau, 2022 NAICS index file.

SBA size standard for 212114

To count as a small business for SBA loans and federal contracts under NAICS 212114, your business (including affiliates) must not exceed 1,250 employees. Check your business.

Source: SBA table of size standards, effective March 17, 2023.

Closest UK SIC 2007 codes

There is no official one-to-one link between NAICS and UK SIC. These codes share the same international class (ISIC Rev. 4: 0520, 0510), so treat them as a starting point and check the definition.

• 05101Deep coal minesUK SIC
• 05102Open cast coal workingUK SIC
• 05200Mining of ligniteUK SIC

Built from Census concordances 2022→2017 NAICS and 2017 NAICS→ISIC Rev. 4.

Similar codes to compare

• 212115Underground Coal Mining