The Administration of Krasnodon Coal has identified a set of safety enforcement measures above the safety requirements provided for in the current legislation. They include additional air cooling, maximum possible automation of the people and equipment underground location control systems, as well as additional training of the mine workers in safety.
PJSC Krasnodon Coal also has adopted the Resolution to pay bonuses to the miners for compliance with the safety rules.
Inspection of electrical and mechanical equipment and cabling networks has been undertaken in all of the company’s mines. The inspection findings will serve as the basis for development of a set of measures intended to provide additional individual air cooling in the mine workings with high ambient temperature.
By the end of 2011, the program to introduce the personnel and mobile equipment positioning devices is expected to be developed and implemented. This system will allow automated and continuous monitoring of the people and transportation equipment location underground, inform the drivers of the underground transportation about people on the way of their movement, optimize the work of underground transportation, and facilitate the search for and identification of the personnel by the mine rescuers in cases of emergency.
Training of new personnel at the Training Center will be extended from 2 to 2.5 months, and the curriculum will include more practical sessions. The training coal face and drift working face will be assigned to the Training Center with equipment and industrial safety devices allowing conduction of practical sessions with the trainees. Experienced workers will be involved as mentors.
A group of public inspectors on labor and industrial safety will be established under the Technical Function of Krasnodon Coal. This group will be comprised of the engineering and technical personnel possessing extensive experience in the mines. The trade unions will also be involved.
A special monitoring regime also has been established at the mines of Krasnodon Coal, envisaging 24/7 presence of the management personnel on duty in shifts. The enhanced monitoring is first of all targeted at assurance of compliance with the dust and gas regime, dust-explosion protection, ventilation sustainability, compliance with the mine work management passports, and drilling and blasting operations.
According to the findings of the Government Investigation Committee regarding the emergency at Suhodolskoe-Vostochnoe mine and the Orders issued by Krasnodon Coal, six managers of Suhodolskoe-Vostochnoe mine have been dismissed pursuant to the procedure provided for in the law: Chief Engineer, Deputy Director on Labor Safety, Head of the Drifting Section, Head of the Ventilation and Safety Section, Shift Manager, and the Head of Drilling and Blasting Operations Section.
Metinvest’s Coke & Coal division produces coking and steam coal, blast furnace coke, nut coke and coke breeze, as well as a range of chemical products, including naphthalene, phenols, cresoles, and other chemical products. The division’s three industrial assets are based in the Donbass region of Ukraine: Avdiivka Coke, one of the leading European (excluding Russia) coke and coal companies and the largest coke and chemical plant in Ukraine; Krasnodon Coal, the second largest coking coal producer in Ukraine, according to the Ministry of Coal industry of Ukraine; and Inkor Chemicals, one of the largest manufacturers of naphthalene in Europe. In addition, in April 2009, Metinvest acquired a 100% stake in United Coal, a U.S. producer of coking and steam coal. Metinvest conducts its coke and coal business principally through Krasnodon Coal, United Coal, and Avdiivka Coke.