Coal- type uranium deposits are critical for the sustainable development of Chinas nuclear energy industry and the achievement of its ‘double carbon’ goals. This study, using X- ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), inductively coupled plasma- mass spectrometry (ICP- MS), and X- ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), investigates the elemental geochemistry, U- enrichment controlling factors, and valence state characteristics of uranium during activation and migration processes in coals from the Honghaigou mine in the Yili basin. Our results indicated that: ① The Honghaigou coal displays abnormally high uranium enrichment, with an average of 258.91 μg/g. This enrichment can be attributed to several contributing factors: the presence of U- rich Permian- Carboniferous Hercynian granites with a stable monoclinic structure; the association of sandy conglomerate and coarse sandstone of the Toutunhe Formation; arid climatic conditions following the Late Jurassic; and the infiltration of epigenetic U- rich solutions. These factors collectively controlled the co- enrichment of U, Re, Se, Mo, and other elements in this coal. ② In the oxidation zone of the coal- rock- type uranium ore, U6+ migrates in the form of complexes or acid radicals. As this migration continues to the oxidation- reduction transition zone, U6+ is reduced to U4+ and precipitates, leading to enrichment in uranium- rich oxygenated fluids. The uranium content of the original, reduced zone decreases and tends towards a solid state. In contrast, in the weak oxidation- reduction transition zone of the Honghaigou mine, uranium content exhibits a sharp increase, and the high- valence variable elements become co- enriched at the top of the coal seam in the Se- U- Re- Mo combination. ③ The spatial distribution of mineral resources in Honghaigou mine, characterized by ‘upper uranium and lower coal’, alongside the development of multiple coal seams in the lower part of the uranium mine, allows for a strategic and balanced mining approach. The upper sandstone- type uranium mine is preferentially mined by in- situ leaching, while the lower coal- rock- type uranium mine adopts the underground mining method to carry out ‘underground coal gasification+coal ash in- situ leaching mining’. This dual mining strategy allows for the extraction of uranium from coal ash and its subsequent utilization on the surface, promoting the coordinated mining and utilization of both coal and uranium resources.