Prince Colliery is operated by the Cape Breton Development Corporation (CBDC), and is 100% owned by the Federal Government of Canada. It commenced mining operations in 1975 and is the only colliery presently active in the Sydney Coalfield. Its coal reserves consist of 94 million tonnes of medium grade thermal bituminous coal. It annual target production is 1.3 million tonnes which is extracted using retreat longwall mining. The coal is consumed by the Nova Scotia Power Corporation.