The city of Vorkuta grew up on the site of a large coal deposit beyond the Arctic Circle. Open-pit coal mining in this region was not possible, which determined the active construction of mines in the 1930s and 1950s. A monotown with developed coal mining is becoming the backbone of the Arctic, but the industrial crisis that began at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries led to the loss of a significant number of promising mines. The lack of operational exploration, difficult geological conditions, geodynamic phenomena, the danger of work and equipment wear have reduced the overall production efficiency. As a result, today out of 13 mines only 4 remained afloat.
High Quality Vorkuta Mine Raw Materials
The Vorkuta geological and industrial region is of particular importance, being a strategic base of high-quality metallurgical and energy raw materials for the northern and central regions of Russia. It has the largest coal deposits in Europe (reserves of about 4 billion tons) and has a fairly high industrial potential. Vorkuta coal mines were in demand not only by domestic enterprises and in the CIS countries, but also in Denmark, France, Italy, Sweden and Norway.
All coal mining in the area is carried out by Vorkutaugol, one of the largest coal mining companies in Russia. Today it is represented by 5 underground mines (Vorgashorskaya, Severnaya, Zapolyarnaya, Komsomolskaya and Vorkutinskaya) and a coal mine (Yunyaginsky) operating in the Pechora coal basin. Their total volume not so long ago averaged about 12.3 million tons of coal per year. Today's numbers are much more modest due to the failure of the Severnaya mine.
At present, 2 more mine fields of the Usinsky deposit are in a state of readiness to ensure the extraction of 7.5 million tons of coking coal per year. Their total reserves are projected to be nearly 900 million tons of coal.
According to the pages of history
The presence of coal in the expanses of the Bolshezemelskaya tundra was first confirmed by the geographical expedition of Professor E. Hoffmann in 1848. However, the tsarist government did not give much attention to the territory of the Far North; all observations and studies remained ignored for a long time. The discovery by A. A. Chernov of the Pechora coal basin in 1924 entailed a number of expeditions, including an examination of the Vorkuta river for the availability of valuable raw materials. In 1930, five layers of coal of working capacity were found in the territory of the region, which predetermined the birth of the city.
In 1931, detachments of miners, workers and geologists were sent to the area, who drilled the first exploratory well and raised the first thousand tons of coal. Vorkuta developed rapidly: new mines were regularly built and existing mines merged. In 1945, about 10 mines functioned in the district, in 1953 there were already 17 mines. In 1954, the Tsentralnaya mine was commissioned. In Vorkuta, it was the first mine where free people worked. It should be noted that before this, the main labor force in the mines was represented mainly by prisoners of the Vorkutlag camp.
In 1990, 13 mines operated in Vorkuta, but the subsequent restructuring of the coal industry eliminated most of them.
Mine "Vorkutinskaya"
The Vorkutinskaya coal mine was built and put into operation in 1973 on the basis of No. 1 (Capital) and No. 40 mines of the city of Vorkuta. The depth of its development is 780 meters. The object fulfills the layers of “triple” (2.2-3 meters) and “fourth” (1.4-1.6 meters). Its category is recognized as dangerous in terms of sudden emissions and explosive coal dust.
The mine’s production capacity produces about 1.8 million tons of coal per year, while raw material reserves amount to about 40 million tons. Given the performance, mining of the mine will continue for more than a decade. To fully develop reserves, the company’s management has a number of tasks to modernize production. During the work of the Vorkuta miners, 120 million tons of coal were mined.
Mine "Komsomolskaya"
The construction of the Komsomolskaya mine in Vorkuta was completed in December 1976. It appeared as a result of a difficult combination of mine fields No. 17, No. 18 and No. 25. Since the start of work, miners have raised more than 70 million tons of coal.
Currently, coal seams are being developed at great depths (1,100 meters), which sets the mine apart from the rest. Despite the complexity of the mining and geological conditions, Komsomolskaya continues to demonstrate fairly high efficiency, providing coal grade 2Zh. The introduction of technologies to solve the problems of degassing and ventilation of coal mines is practiced.
Mine "Zapolyarnaya"
In Vorkuta, the Zapolyarnaya mine is the only facility that has not undergone any group reconstructions and has continued to work on one industrial site for about 70 years. The first ton of coal was raised in December 1949. The mine went into operation with an estimated capacity of 500 thousand tons of coal per year, but it was quickly exceeded by 35%. Within its field (34 sq. Km) there are “triple”, “fourth” and “fifth” layers, but only the first two are workers. Since 1970, 90 million tons of coal have been mined at Zapolyarnaya.
The Zapolyarnaya mine was among the first to practice integrated excavation and served as an underground laboratory for testing mining equipment. Over the years, she underwent many reconstructions and reforms. In 2010, the mine once again acted as a testing ground for new technologies. It successfully completed the tests of a dry coal preparation plant.
Mine "Vorgashorskaya"
The largest coal mining enterprise in the European part of Russia is the Vorgashorskaya mine. Its construction began in 1964 and lasted almost 11 years. The first tons of coal were mined only in November 1975, but the achievements and records of the mine began to quickly replenish the pages of history. To date, the facility has already produced 168 million tons of coal.
Vorgashorskaya, being one of the youngest mines in Vorkuta, is more modernized and equipped relative to others. In the arsenal of the object there are samples of equipment and specialized equipment from leading manufacturers. Thus, the use of the JOY complex in 2010 allowed the brigade of site No. 1 to pass 1212 m of mine workings per month. This achievement has surpassed all the best results of the coal enterprises of the continent.
At this stage, the southwest block is being mined, according to confirmed forecasts, there are more than 14 million tons of coking coal.
Mine "North"
On the basis of reconstruction of mine fields No. 5 and No. 7, the Severnaya mine was built and put into operation in December 1969. In Vorkuta, it was and remains the most promising, while the potential volume of its deposits has not yet been explored. Unlike other mines, the thickness of the coal seam at Severnaya reaches 4 meters. During its operation, it produced 128 million tons of coking coal grade 2Zh.
In February 2016, a series of explosions occurred in Vorkuta at the Severnaya mine, resulting in the death of miners. As a result of this tragedy, it was decided to flood the facility. Nevertheless, from 2020, it is planned to develop part of the Severnaya fields through the adjacent fields of the Komsomolskaya mine.