NexGen, an affiliate of NexGen Resources Corporation of Aurora, Colorado, will have the exclusive licensing rights for the system.
The RAHCO designed navigation and control system guides the miner into the seam and minimizes the risk of pillar collapse as the system moves ever deeper into the highwall.
RAHCO said these highwall systems are highly productive and mine coal seams cleanly and cost effectively with minimal reclamation costs. The company claims that mining depths of 1500 feet are attainable in coal seams of variable thickness at heights as low as 32”. The system launches off the highwall mining platform and includes a continuous miner, breaker/feeder car, stabiliser module and a varying number of self-propelled conveying cards depending on the depth of the seam being mined.
The first system is scheduled for delivery in early 2002, tentatively to a West Virginian mine. The system will mine to a depth of 1000’ on a horizontal seam with 49, each 20-foot long, self-propelled conveying cars, a continuous miner and a breaker/feeder car. The system will operate on a 40’ bench.
RAHCO said the initial intent in designing new highwall mining systems was to allow economical recovery of reserves that have been abandoned in the past. Since implementation of US legislation (the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977), highwall mining on narrow benches has not been cost effective.
“This new concept has found significant interest in the coal mining market, which has recently re-emerged as a major player in the energy industry due to shortages in the past two years. In the future, the companies (RAHCO and NexGen) will provide a wide variety of systems for a broad range of applications,” a company spokesman said.
