OPERATION FOCUS
This mining technique prevents dangerous deformations of the underworked rock mass and consequently eliminates the penetration of underground water into the mined-out area . Variations include mining with yielding pillars , mining with support pillars , and a combination of both .
JSC Belaruskali is also the only major potash mining company today which uses the pillar mining technique and longwall shearers . The pillar mining of the 2nd and 3rd potash seams by longwall mining ( face mining ) with roof collapse has been used since 1969 . The following types of pillar mining are used :
■ Complete mining of the 2nd seam and the layers II , II-III and III of the 3rd seam without longwall slicing
■ Selective mining of the layers II , II-III and III of the 3rd seam without longwall slicing
■ Layer mining of the 2nd seam
■ Layer mining of the 3rd seam . At the present time about 70 % of ore is mined using longwall mining techniques with a fleet of Eickhoff shearers ( faces 180-300 m long ). The 3rd potash level has three productive sylvinite layers ( II , III and IV ) divided by seams of halite . When using the combined system of mining , the upper ( IV ) sylvinite layer is mined using the pillar technique and the subsequent layers ( II and III ) are mined by the chamber method of mining . This system is now seldom used due to a big loss of the mineral recovery from the layers II and III .
Lastly , the development workings within the deposit are driven by continuous mining complexes , which consist of a continuous miner , a conveyor hopper and a shuttle car . The workings are 3.0 , 4.0 , 4.05 , and 4.5 m wide ( depending on the type of continuous miner used and the purpose of the workings ). The height is 2.4 , 2.6 , or 3.0 m and the floor of the working can be undercut if necessary .
When sylvinite and halite are extracted separately using the layer mining method the content of potassium chloride ( KCl ) in the mined ore rises up to 30-35 % because in this case only sylvinite layers are extracted , while halite is left underground . Every year more than 1 Mt of waste rock is stockpiled in the worked-out areas underground , thus reducing the environmental impact on the industrial district and preventing deformations of the land surface .
JSC Belaruskali also now has the rights to use the subsurface resources within the western part of the Nezhinsky plot of the Starobin deposit . The company additionally has the possibility to mine the ore reserves of the Darasinsky plot totalling 180 Mt .
The next mining phase involves opening the 4th potash level at PU 2 . The reserves of the 1st potash level at PUs 3 and 4 are also included in plans for future mining . The improvement of mining and processing techniques also allows JSC Belaruskali to consider reserves located at a depth of 1,000 m or more as the source of replenishment of ore resources .
Production and exports , new horizons
Total processed KCl fertiliser production from the whole mining complex stood at about 9.5 Mt in 2016 , though this was lower than usual due to delays in Chinese contracts and a low demand globally . However , the company still maintained a higher output than the other potash majors . Belaruskali ships potash to southeast Asia , Europe , Africa , Brazil and North and South America . There are also so-called contract markets , such as China and India . Overall the group exports to more than 90 countries . Most of the potash is railed to Klaipeda , a dedicated potash port in Lithuania .
The company is also developing a completely new mine and plant about 150 km away known as Petrikov , where the first phase of the factory will be commissioned in December 2019 and where the designed capacity will be reached in December 2021 . The plant ’ s output capacity will be at least 1.5 Mt of KCl per annum and later on the capacity may be increased up to 3 Mt / y . The Petrikov deposit of potash salts was discovered in 1966 . At present there are eight potash horizons some of which are very high in purity . The expected reserves stand at about 2.2 billion tonnes , with the occurrence depth reaching 1.2 km . Taking into account the available reserves , the targeted designed capacity , and optimisation of the operation of every industrial horizon the useful life of the Petrikov mining and processing factory is estimated at about 90 years .
Further afield , Belaruskali also has a new mine in the Koytendag district of the Lebap region of Turkmenistan known as Garlyk , which opened in March 2017 and whose plant has a capacity of 1.4 Mt / y for both domestic supply and export .
Finally , another potash mine in Belarus is being developed by a private investor under the company name Slavkaliy , which is set to produce 2 Mt / y from 2021 from the Nezhinsky plot of the Starobin potash basin . The Slavkaily mining project comprises the construction of a mine , processing plant , and gas pipeline , and renovation of road and railway infrastructure in the area .
Mining production methods in depth
Belaruskali operates six mines and four process plants which together make up four Production Units ( PUs ). There are fewer plants than mines as the existing process facilities had available capacity as the complex developed . The mines operate three 6 hour shifts per day with one 6 hour maintenance / service shift . The most recently developed two mines are Mine No 5 ( Krasnoslobodsky ), which was commissioned in 2009 , with its potash production conveyed to the Mine No 2 plant for processing . Equally , production from Mine No 6 ( Berezovsky ) which was commissioned in 2012 , is conveyed to Mine No 1 for processing via a 10.4 km surface conveyor that was designed and built by Metso .
Eickhoff at Belaruskali
Eickhoff operates in Belarus and at the mining complex through 100 % owned subsidiary EickhoffBel , with a dedicated workshop and office at the minesite , and a team of engineers , both local and from the head office in Bochum , Germany .
The mining complex has over 90 Eickhoff longwall shearers mining both thinner and thicker potash seam heights
International Mining | AUGUST 2017