Labour productivity in the industry for last five years has grown by 75% and has reached 127 tons per worker per month. This is the highest level in the history of the industry’s existence in USSR.
Coal’s share of energy used for power generation now exceeds 30%. In accordance with the government approved power policy, this percentage will increase each year, reaching 55-60% in two decades. Coal will substitute step-by-step the expensive gas and mazut used in the furnaces of Russian thermal power stations.
An extensive program of industry re-structuring has been carried out during the past years of reforms. About 150 unprofitable mines are now closed, and potent coal companies are put into operation. Coal production continues to grow with 257.9 million tons produced in 2000, up 8.5 million tons on the previous year. The main rise was achieved by mines in the East and West-Siberian regions (Kuzbass and Kansk-Achinsk coal fields). Production during the first half of 2001 was 135 million tons, which underlines the upward trend in production growth.
Russia’s Power Policy and Energy-Effective Economics state programs project increases in coal production to 300 million tons by 2005, 335 million tons by 2010, and 430 million tons by 2020. For this to be achieved building new operations and renovating the operational companies are envisioned. It is projected this will demand investment of 67.14 billion roubles (about US$2.23 billion) by 2005.
For these purposes Rb17.72 billion is expected to be allotted from the federal budget. Remaining investment will come from coal companies, investors and bank credits.
The structure of coal consumption is undergoing significant changes in recent years. Deliveries of coal to local markets for 2000 and the first half of 2001 have decreased by approximately 5 millions tons. Exports for the same period have grown by 10.5 million tons.
The drop in internal coal deliveries is connected first of all with the low paying capacity of some customers. The level of payment in cash by the electric power generation industry averages about 63%, while other industry customers averages 75-85%. The importing of fuel from other regions is limited because of high railroad rates and shortage of freight cars. However, demand for coal in the domestic industry is considerably ahead of rates of production growth. And this, in the opinion of specialists, does not guarantee the continuous securing of customers by power utilities.
In 2001 some new production and processing enterprises have been put into operation. Among them are underground mines Taldinskaya-Zapadnaya-2 and Tayzhina, open-cut mine Kamyshansky, and the Antonovskaya processing plant .
The Taldinskaya-Zapadnaya-2 longwall mine is equipped with domestic mining equipment and within a year it is expected to produce 2.4 million tons of coal. The mine is owned by the Sokolovskaya Investment Company. During the past year this same company has put into operation Mine No 7, which is one of the world’s best in mining, technical equipment and productivity. With its Taldinskaya mine, the company now manages three mines.
The labour productivity of the Kamyshansky open mine (owned by Holding Company Kuzbassrazrezugol) will reach 500 tons per worker per month. The production cost of 1 ton of coal will average Rb150 (about US$5). The Kamyshansky mine was constructed over a period of only several months and already reserves of 22 million tons are prepared for mining. This amount will be enough, as a minimum, for 20 years of activity. After the seams deposited close to a surface will be finished, Kuzbassrazrezugol will begin construction of an underground mine. Both Taldinskaya-Zapadnaya-2 and Kamyshansky mines have modern access railway lines. Neither mines has surface storage facilities and mined coal is delivered immediately to customers.
The Antonovskaya processing plant will refine coal from mines Antonovskaya and Polosukhinskaya. This is unique plant for Russia, partly because the equipment was supplied by American corporation SETCO. It uses modern technologies for coal preparation which eliminates thermal drying. Together with a dust suppression system the plant provides high ecology standards.
* Alex Salyayev is mine engineer at the Krasnoarmeyskaya-Zapadnaya N1 longwall mine in eastern Ukraine.
