Central China's Henan province is severely affected by gas disasters in coal mines, mainly due to a considerable share of high-gas and coal-and-gas outburst mines, according to a meeting held by the provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology on March 21.
The combined production capacity of mentioned mines took up 74.12% of the province's total capacity, posing immense difficulties in disaster prevention, the meeting emphasized.
Specifically, among the 147 announced coal mines in Henan, 15 were high-gas mines, with a total capacity of 11.82 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa), taking up 8.25% of the total. 72 coal-and-gas outburst mines' cumulative capacity amounted to 94.43 Mtpa, representing 65.87% of the total, based on official data and Sxcoal's Coal Mine Capacity Database.
60 low-gas mines have a combined capacity of 37.10 Mtpa, accounting for 25.88% of the province's total capacity, data showed.
Henan has anchored the goal of "zero coal seam outburst and zero gas explosion", making every effort to prevent gas disasters and severely punishing multiple illegal acts. In 2023, the province exceeded the national target for gas extraction and utilization. Number of accidents associated with gas concentration exceeding the limits declined 13% year on year.
However, there were still challenges in gas prevention. The meeting highlighted the need to effectively address the deep-seated issues, including the complacency mindset and need-to-be improved law enforcement effectiveness.
The province will focus on proactive prevention, perfect technical management systems and make full use of safety monitoring systems, pushing the prevention work to a new level in 2024.
(Writing by yan.sun Editing by Harry Huo)
For any questions, please contact us by inquiry@fwenergy.com or +86-351-7219322.