OREANDA-NEWS. The Pechorskaya Central Coal Cleaning Plant, part of OAO Vorkutaugol, one of Russia’s largest coal mining companies and part of OAO Severstal, has completed the initial phase of its modernization programme which will enable an increase in annual mined rock processing capacity of more than one third.

This first phase of the Pechorskaya plant modernization programme involved the strengthening of the Pechorskaya Plant building, which was initially constructed in the 1970s and not designed to house modern high-power production equipment. Colleagues from across Severstal’s Resources division — including specialists from PBS Coals in the USA and experts from SPb-Giproshakht, an engineering consultancy within Severstal – collaborated to develop innovative solutions for the plant modernization which included the use of steel structures to strengthen the building.

A further element this phase of the plant’s modernization involved the replacement and modernization of production equipment. During this phase, 23 pieces of equipment were replaced and the number of machines under service was reduced by almost half. The upgrades to the plant’s equipment has meant that the number of screens at Section 2 of the plant were reduced from 18 to five, and old spiral separators were replaced with a new and unique hydrosizer, which is fully automated, easier to maintain and assumes less space. As a result of these investments and initiatives, Section 2 of the plant has seen a 30% uptick in efficiency with a production increase from 500 tonnes of rock mass per hour to700−800 tonnes.

Oleg Grishin, deputy director of coal preparation at Vorkutaugol, said: “A unique aspect of this phase of modernization was the installation of new equipment without an impact on production. We have moved from our old processes to new ones in record time – in just five days. This equipment modernization will make the preparation process more efficient and reduce maintenance costs. Specialists from the Vorkuta Mechanical Plant and MRIT, a North American company, played a key role in the equipment mounting.”

The programme to increase production capacity at Pechorskaya is in line with Vorkutaugol’s strategic plan to increase coal production. In line with this goal, the construction of an inclined shaft that will deliver rock mass from the Vorkutinskaya and Zapolyarnaya mines to the Pechorskaya Plant will be completed in the near future.

Sergey Efanov, CEO of OAO Vorkutaugol, commented: “When the plant upgrade programme is completed, we expect to process 11.5 million tonnes of coal per year. As of today, the production capacity of the plant has reached 9 million tonnes. In 2013, for the first time in its history the Pechorskaya Central Coal Cleaning Plant processed 7.5 million tonnes of coal. This is a significant achievement and will help us to maintain our strong position in the market.”