Record longwall progress in October
We now know summary data on coal production at Bogdanka for last month. In October 2023, longwall 7/VIII/389 (longwall 7, mining lot VIII, seam 389) in the Stefanów mining field achieved a record progress, i.e. 465 meters per month. For the Bogdanka mine, this is the largest monthly longwall progress in the 41 years of its coal production.
The longwall progress in a mine is the process of gradual moving of the front of the longwall during mining. In the case of this longwall, coal extraction is carried out using a longwall shearer, capable of efficient extraction of large quantities of winnings in a specified period of time (e.g. within one working shift). The shearer is equipped with two shearer drums. The purpose of these drums is to crush coal and rocks lying in the seam, i.e. the layer of rock to be mined. Then the resulting output is transported by scraper and belt conveyors to the mining shaft (the so-called skip), where it is transported to the surface for further processing until it reaches the parameters of commercial coal.
This is a huge success for the whole Company. So far, in the entire history of Bogdanka, only four times has it been possible to achieve a progress exceeding 400 meters in a month. I would like to thank very much all the miners and employees who contributed to this record result with their work. This is a huge organizational and logistical effort of all the mine's services, but it is also due to the exceptional ambition and commitment of our staff
says Kasjan Wyligała, President of the LW Bogdanka SA Management Board.
Longwall 7/VIII/389 in the Stefanów field is being mined ca. 930 m underground in a 24-hour, 5-shift system.
Preliminary results of production and sales of commercial coal in Q4 and the entire 2023 will be reported in January 2024.
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Additional information about longwall 7/VIII/389
Longwall 7/VIII/389 is mined approx. 930 m underground with a longwall system with roof rock caving, in a 5-shift work system, i.e. 4 mining shifts and 1 maintenance shift. The longwall is mined by the mining division G-2, with a crew of 172 blue-collar workers and 10 supervisory personnel. In October this year, the mining of the aforementioned longwall was carried out for 26 production days. The longwall galleries are made using the LPSC 11/K V-36 supports with 0.9m spacing.
The longwall started operation on 11 September this year and by the end of September had achieved a progress of 180.5 m. On 26 October this year, the longwall achieved a daily progress of 21.5 m. The extraction of excavated coal amounted to approx. 30,470 t, and the production of commercial coal amounted to approx. 22,517 t, which means that 1 meter of longwall progress yielded approx. 1,417 t of excavated coal, i.e. about 1,047 t of commercial coal.
Characteristics of the longwall:
1. length of the longwall 280 m,
2. average thickness of the seam 2.31 m,
3. average interlayers of waste rock in the seam 0.27 m,
4. planned longwall run - 1,845 m,
5. inclination of the longwall - 0 ⁰ ÷ 2⁰.
Natural hazards:
a) methane - I category,
b) coal dust explosion - class B,
c) water - grade I,
d) fire - IV group of self-flammability.
Longwall equipment:
- 6 "extreme" powered support sections, type Glinik 12/31 - POz and Hydrotech 12/31- POz with a spacing of 1.75 m, - 2.2 m,
- 151 “linear” powered support sections, type Glinik 12/31 - POz and Hydrotech 12/31- POz with a spacing of 1.75 m,
- 2 PEGAZ/II standing support units, built in longwall recesses,
- JOY 7 LS 22 longwall shearer,
- JOY - AFC longwall conveyor with trough width of 890 mm,
- JOY - BSL bottom-gallery conveyor with a length of 52 m,
- FLB - 9 B coal crusher,
- WARAN - SIGMA overrun station,
- belt conveyors with a belt width of 1,600 to 1,200 mm.
Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. is a leading hard coal producer in Poland that stands apart from its peers in terms of its modern and efficient mining. It is one of the largest Polish hard coal mines. Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. chiefly conducts mining operations in terms of hard coal extraction, enrichment and sales. It supplies this raw material mainly to industrial offtakers. Supply contracts are long-term, and the product is sold to the commercial power sector and the industrial power sector.
The company has been listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange since June of 2009. In August 2022, Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. returned to listing on the WIG-ESG Index.
Since October of 2015 Bogdanka has been a member of the Enea Group, the second largest player on Poland’s electrical power market in terms of the generation of electricity, which manages the entire value chain on the electricity market ranging from fuel to the generation of electricity, distribution, sales (supply) and customer service.