MECHANISED COAL
In it for the longwall
The move towards fully autonomous longwall operations continues apace , Dan Gleeson discovers
The heart of FAMUR ’ s automation system is a gateway computer located near the face
Despite all the headwinds – and there have been many over the last 24 months – the coal sector continues to outperform expectations with pricing , demand and innovation all defying the odds and perception that the coal sector is dead .
If there was one recent news story to sum up the reality of today ’ s coal market it would be Glencore ’ s recent acquisition of the remaining stakes it did not already own in the Cerrejón coal operation in Colombia .
The circa- $ 588 million transaction saw Glencore become the 100 % owner of the operation , taking 33 % stakes from BHP and Anglo American .
The official press release was accompanied by a quote from the soon-to-be-departing Glencore CEO , Ivan Glasenberg , who laid down the facts : “ Glencore has been involved with Cerrejón for more than 20 years . We know the asset well and believe that we are the most responsible steward for Cerrejón at this stage of its lifecycle . Disposing of fossil fuel assets and making them someone else ’ s issue is not the solution and it won ’ t reduce absolute emissions .”
Further to this , he said he was confident Glencore could manage the decline of its fossil fuel portfolio “ in a responsible manner that is also consistent with meeting the goals of the
Paris Agreement , as demonstrated by our strengthened total emission reduction targets ”.
Even with this agreement in place , Glencore still plans to progressively expire the current mining concessions by 2034 .
This means Cerrejón , one of the largest surface mining operations in the world and a producer of high-quality thermal coal , is likely to keep mining for another 13 years . This will happen while Glencore cuts its absolute total emissions ( Scope 1 , 2 and 3 ) by 15 % by 2026 compared with 2019 levels , showing that – in contrast to public opinion – major miners can retain coal operations while moving towards ‘ greener ’ operating philosophies .
Safely does it
Anglo American , like Glencore , has ambitious emissions goals and is looking to achieve carbon neutrality across its operations by 2040 .
It plans to do this while retaining – or even building on – its position as the world ’ s third largest seaborne exporter of metallurgical coal , which it mines from open-pit and underground
mines in Queensland , Australia .
Anglo ’ s underground mines , specifically , have
been undergoing significant investment over the past few years to make them safer , more automated and productive .
Incidents such as a methane ignition at its Grosvenor underground mine , in May 2020 , and “ elevated readings ” of gases at its Moranbah North mine , earlier this year , may have sped up this investment , but the overarching strategy has been in place for some time .
In a May 2021 ‘ Metallurgical Coal Safety Update ’, Anglo American Australia said , over the last year , it had examined every aspect of the management of risk in its underground mines and put in place a range of measures to address issues that have arisen through investigations and evidence before the Board of Inquiry into the aforementioned incidents .
By the time of the update , the company had invested more than A $ 60 million ($ 44 million ) in technology pilots , additional gas drainage infrastructure , “ expert reviews ” and improvements in a range of processes and controls .
“ As the largest underground metallurgical coal miner in Australia , we will continue to leverage our scale to find new ways of addressing safety risks , drawing on international best practice and technology development , to ensure our systems and processes extend beyond current industry best-practice ,” it said .
In the same update , it reported strong progress in automation and remote operation
34 International Mining | SEPTEMBER 2021