chain valley coal mine
DESCRIPTION
Peter Ross, Managing Director, from Lake Coal & LDO Group delivered this presentation at 2012 Longwall conference in the Hunter Valley Australia. Building on eleven years of excellence it’s rare that such a large gathering of underground coal operators come together under the one roof, providing a great opportunity to catch up with friends, industry leaders, former colleagues and longwall mining specialists. For more information, please visit: http://www.longwallconference.com.auTRANSCRIPT
CHAIN VALLEY MINE
From Bord & Pillar to Longwall
Longwall Conference – 2012 –
MineLocation
• Chain Valley is located in the Newcastle coalfield on the southern shores of Lake Macquarie, around 100 klm north of Sydney.
• The mine is immediately adjacent to Delta Electricity's Vales Point power station, one of Chain Valley's major customers.
• Mine leases cover an area of 2100 hectares, with access to three mineable seams
• Current JORC estimates are 25 Mt of recoverable thermal product.
• The mine has had many owners since its commencement in August 1962.
• LDO Coal acquired part ownership of Chain Valley in 2009 with full acquisition effected in December 2010.
• Current markets consist of both export and domestic with target production of 1.2Mt per annum.
Chain Valley
History of Chain Valley
Review of Strata ManagementSystem
• A full analysis of geotechnical issues at the mine was undertaken in 2010 incorporating:
– Establishment of the Authority to Mine process
– Regular Strata Control Committee meetings
– Extensive strata monitoring and review
– Extensive geological mapping
– Specialist geotechnical training sessions
– Open forum with employees
– Audit and Review process to refine strata support plan
From Bord & Pillar toLongwall
• Following review of the Strata Management System it became evident the mine could not be successful with place change mining.
• In late 2010 a decision was made to change the method of mining at Chain Valley from a bord-and-pillar operation to the Longwall mining method along with utilising bolter miners.
From Bord & Pillar toLongwall
• The first bolter miner arrived in December 2010 to drive the Tailgate of Longwall 1 and the second JOY 12CM30 arrived in the first quarter of 2011.
• Capital required
• Lead time of Longwall components
• Departmental approval
• Mine culture toward new mining method of mining
• Whole of workforce training in new mining method
Challenges for LW
Challenges
• Ventilation upgrade to facilitate new mining method
• The mine’s conveyor system, incorporating:
– Underground bin capacity
– Cable belt throughput
– Surface bin throughput
– Crushing plant throughput
Challenges
Longwall Supplier Selection
• Developed a close relationship with a Chinese manufacturer for the supply of mechanical and structural components of a longwall mining system.
• The main drivers for this liaison were:
1. Price
2. Availability
3. Design-build to mine requirements
Longwall Build• Business risk assessment was
undertaken from the viewpoint of utilising unproven Chinese equipment in Australia.
• Use of Chinese motors that required IEC approval.
• During construction process audits and design verification were undertaken by a third party.
• Supports tested to Consol 30K cycles with an exceptional outcome –previously never undertaken in China
Longwall Specifications
Width … 61m – 85m
Length … 910m to 1700m
Shearer manufacturer … Bucyrus
Type … Electra EL 2000 DERDS
Drum diameter … MG - 2m – TG – 2m
Cutting height / method /web depth … 3.2 – 3.5 m / Uni-di / 750mm
Install power … 1275 kW
Roof support manufacturer … SIWEI
Longwall SpecificationsType Number of supports … 2-leg chock shield / 38-52
Yield load/ working range/control … 800 t / 1.8 – 3.9 m / Tiefenbach
Tip to Face 400mm
Face conveyor manufacturer … IMM , SGZ800/200 twin inboard
1000tph capacity
Chain speed & manufacturer … 1.2 m/s / Parsons
AFC Motors … 1 x 250 kW
Beam stageloader … IMM, SZZ800/200, 200 kW
Coal crusher … IMM, PLM 2000, 200 kW
Coal clearance (to surface)type/capacity … Conveyor / 500tph
Longwall Implementation
• 61.5m Longwall commenced MW Block 1 in September 2011 –10 months from conception to implementation.
• Extensive training undertaken for very inexperienced workforce.
• Currently mining block 3 with higher than expected reliability and performance being achieved.
• In June 2012 block 3 was extended to 85m adding an additional 14 roof supports and AFC components.
Chain Valley is the first underground mine to implement andsuccessfully complete a Chinese manufactured longwall in Australia
Chain Valley Extension