The “hero of Kuzbass,” Yevgeny Kosmin, and his brigade set another record for monthly coal production record at the Yalevsky mine, according to the Siberian Coal & Energy Co. (SUEK). The brigade produced 1.627 million metric tons (mt) of coal in August, the highest monthly underground coal production figure for Russia and the world.
“SUEK has invested a lot in equipment upgrades and [this longwall] is the best in the world,” Kosmin said. “We have a new generation Eickhoff SL 900 shearer loader that can produce up to [4,000 mt/h].
Kosmin said the operation moved to a new seam, where it began to mine panels with face lengths of 400 meters, which are unique in Russia.
“The new mining technology makes it possible to produce more coal with fewer passes,” he added.
All coal was mined from panel No. 5004, which is 3.8-m thick and contains 5.7 million mt of coal.
In 2017, the Yevgeny Kosmin brigade set several production records. In May and July, the team produced 1.407 million mt and 1.567 million mt, respectively. By the end of 2017, however, total production only amounted to 5.3 million mt. Starting the new panel in April, the brigade has already produced 4.9 million mt, having updated its monthly record in August.
SUEK CEO Vladimir Rashevsky said, “This is a new step in the development of the modern, technologically advanced Russian coal industry.”
SUEK has invested 10 billion rubles (more than $145 million) in the Yalevsky mine during the past five years.
