Western Coalfields to modernise mines

Nagpur-based public sector company Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) is banking on modern technology to improve its dismal output per manshift (OMS) figures and increase the production.

The coal company will implement continuous miner technology (CMT) at its six underground (UG) mines and long wall technology at one of its mines. The new methods are more machine-oriented than conventional mining methods.

The company expects an increase of one million tonnes in production per year after the introduction of continuous miner technology at its six mines. In late 90s, the company had given the contract for implementing continuous miner technology at Tandsi I and II mines to Joy Mining of United Kingdom.

Both these underground mines registered a growth of 94 per cent in coal production during May 2005, compared with the corresponding period previous year. The mines produced between 1300 tonnes and 1400 tonnes of coal per day, compared with 700-800 tonnes per day during 2004-05 and 200-300 tonnes per day during the year before.

The OMS figures in developed countries is 20 to 25 tonnes more than the output of WCL, while the national average in Coal India Limited (CIL) is a dismal 0.75 tonnes for underground mines.

Tandsi mine is now registering a growth of 7 tonnes in OMS, which is expected to improve further.

The board of the company has approved the implementation of continuous miner technology at its six mines. Formalities have been completed for introducing CMT at its mines at Kumbarkhani in Wani North, Saoner-I (extension) in Nagpur, Nehariya and Dau North in Pench-Kanhan area, Sarni (extension) in Patharkhera and Mauri.

The upgradation will be introduced in the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-2012).

Post modernisation, the annual production from Kumbarkhani will increase to 0.481 mt from 0.30 mt, while the production at Sarni and Saoner-I will increase to 0.39 mt and 0.75 mt respectively, from the present 0.30 mt each.

Currently, WCL has 83 mines, including 43 UG mines, 35 opencast mines and 5 mixed mines in Nagpur, Chandrapur and Yavatmal districts in Maharashtra and Chhindwara and Betul districts of Madhya Pradesh. The annual production capacity of its 43 UG mines was 9.9 mt in 2005-06. This is expected to increase to 10.62 mt in 2006-07.

In 2005-06, 10 loss-making UG mines achieved turnaround, taking the total number of the company's profitable UG mines to 12. The company will introduce long wall technology at its underground mine in Morpar. The mine's annual production is expected to increase by 3 mt.