DBT has signed a contract to supply a fourth automated plow longwall system to the Tiefa Coal Mining Group located in Liaoning Province, China. This will bring the total to nine automated plow systems sold into China since delivery of the first system, which commenced production in January 2001.

The new package takes a further step in the application of DBT’s state of the art systems by using the PMC®–R roof support technology, the lowest version of the Gleithobel plow capable of operating to an extracted height as low as 800 mm and also the latest standard of AFC drive frames and sprockets. The package also includes significant upgrades to the second and third systems to increase their face lengths to 240 m each; same as the fourth system sold.

A spokesperson from Tiefa at the contract signing ceremony held in Beijing stated that the DBT automated plow longwall system has been proven as the most productive, safe and efficient method of mining China’s thin coal seams, while also maximizing extraction. He added that now 26% of Tiefa’s thin seams reserves are mined using the DBT automated plow system and the company’s plans include extending this approach to all of its thin seam reserves. He added that the successful operation of the DBT plows had considerably extended the life of mines by allowing them to access and profitably mine reserves which otherwise would have been uneconomic.

The success of the automated plow systems operating in China has sparked interest and sales of the systems in a number of other countries where thin seams with high quality coal are prevalent and the operators wish to eliminate the need for mining costly and unwanted rock in the run of mine product, DBT reports.

In China DBT automated plow longwall faces hold all the production records for coal seams of 2 m and below.

As normal, part of this latest system will be manufactured in DBT’s Chinese facility in Langfang, which also serves as customer service centre to support DBT longwalls in China.