OREANDA-NEWS. Uralkali has put into operation two modernised Ural-20P combines manufactured by Kopeysk Machine-Building Plant.

New mining equipment was manufactured for the Company as part of a programme to increase the output of combine machines to 1 million tonnes of ore per year. The capacity of the new machine is eight tonnes per minute, one tonne more than the previous Ural 20P model. The operating life has also increased by 300,000 tonnes of ore, now amounting to 1.8 million tonnes.

The design features of the new model include the following: nine major parts have been updated, the undercarriage has been overhauled, more modern and reliable hydraulic motors have been installed, the gearboxes have been reinforced, and the cutting unit has been modernised. An electronic control panel has also been installed in the operator’s cabin. The cabin is equipped with a dust control system which keeps out salt dust.

The modernised combines are currently operating in the Berezniki-4 and Solikamsk-3 mines.

Eduard Smirnov, the First Deputy Technical Director of Mining Operations at Uralkali, commented:

— Increasing output in our mines is not possible without also increasing the operating life of the combine machines. The introduction of more productive and reliable machinery leads to improved safety and increased mining efficiency.

In 2015, the Company plans to acquire 8 continuous miners, 8 conveyer hoppers, 10 shuttle cars, 11 load-haul-dump machines, and 10 Krot and Kurier vehicles to transport people to the mines. The Company is investing a total of more than 1.5 billion roubles on such purchases this year alone.

121 combine systems are currently in operation in five of Uralkali’s mines, each consisting of a tunneling machine, a conveyer hopper and a shuttle car. About 200 units of special auxiliary machinery are also used for mining works.

Uralkali is one of the world’s largest potash producers and exporters. The Company’s assets consist of 5 mines and 7 ore-treatment mills situated in the towns of Berezniki and Solikamsk (Perm Region, Russia). Uralkali employs ca. 11,000 people (in the main production unit). Uralkali’s shares and GDRs are traded on the Moscow Exchange and London Stock Exchange, respectively.