Wyoming business leaders are recommending investing a $1.5 million grant in a proposed coal research facility.

The Casper Star-Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/2pWIenk ) the Wyoming Business Council made the recommendation for the grant for a research facility on alternative uses for coal in northeast Wyoming on Thursday.

The area has coal sector that was hit hard in the industry's recent downturn. Local and state leaders want to find new ways bring relevancy back to Powder River Basin coal.

The State Loan and Investment Board may approve the grant money at its June 15 meeting. The grant would pay for the cost of the land and construction of a 4,000 square-foot (371.6 square-meter) research lab in Fort Union Industrial Park in Gillette.—AP

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