SCCL using Longwall tech to mine coal at Adriyala

PEDDAPALLI : How would one travel and feel when they go 4-km deep into the earth? This is the depth at which miners of the Singareni Collieries Company Limited work at Adriyala Longwall project to extract coal. The use of advanced technology called Longwall, in which heavy machines with thick blades (shearer cutter) tear down chunks of coal bed from an underground mine, obviates blasting which jeopardises workers’ lives. This technology is being tried in India for the first time. 

From this underground mine in Peddapalli district, SCCL extracts 2.817 million tonnes of coal per annum (MTPA). As the conventional underground mining methods are not suitable at greater depths, SCCL officials visited some underground mines in Australia to study the methods in use there. It is a mammoth task to drill through the earth, take heavy machinery there and install it at depths. It takes three months’ time to shift the shearer cutter from one shaft to another which are separated by a few hundred metres.  

In fact, the depths one has to travel to reach the spot is more. Entry to the project is dug at a vertical depth of 120 metres in an open cast mine. That means entry to the tunnel is dug out at a depth of 120 metres. It is called ‘punch entry’. A tunnel is dug into the earth to accommodate car lifts, ropeway cars and conveyor belts for carrying the coal out of the tunnel. And to reach the spot where coal is extracted, one has to descend steadily 4 km in car lifts and trek through the narrow tunnel.

Contrary to the imagination that one would run out of breath or sweat profusely if one walks down into the tunnels  as a temperature varying between 9 and 25 degrees is maintained inside, using air-chilling plants. Ventilation is supported by underground fans. In fact, workers find it difficult when they come out of tunnels in summers when temperature up to 47 degrees is recorded in Peddapalli. They must have ACs in their homes to adapt.An estimated 78.507 MT of coal can be extracted from the reserves and around 2.817 MT is extracted per annum. 

SCCL chief reviews construction of  power plant
SCCL chairman and managing director N Sridhar on Friday reviewed the arrangements for the construction of proposed 800 MW new power plant. Sridhar wanted the officials to level the land and handover it to the BHEL for starting the construction work.