Name and Location
Dębieńsko coking coal mine expansion project, Poland.

Client
New World Resources (NWR).

Project Description
Dębieńsko, located in southern Poland, is Europe’s largest deposit of hard coking coal, with Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant reserves of 190-million tons.

The original Dębieńsko mining complex is “significantly run down”. The entire surface infrastructure has to be rebuilt, including the wash plant and new railway sidings, and a significant amount of underground development will also take place, apart from accessing the 780 m level itself. The mine will be opened through two existing shafts and twin slopes driven from the surface towards the 780 m level of one of the shafts. After initial access is completed, the mine will be developed laterally to open three mining districts consisting of one longwall each.

Following the start of longwall mining in 2017, consecutive longwall mining districts will be successively developed. The mining sequence will progress from the uppermost coal seams to the lower ones, available under the current 50-year licence.

At the rate of two-million tons a year, about half of the existing/licensed reserves will be extracted for the duration of the current licence (to 2048).

Value
€411-million, which includes development capital expenditure (capex) and €133-million for preproduction operating costs associated with the existing infrastructure.

Duration
First coal is scheduled for 2017, with full production expected shortly thereafter.

Latest Developments
NWR  is in preliminary talks with potential financial partners for the development of the Dębieńsko mine.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
NWR had to deal with the discovery of underground water at the mine in 2011. As a result, NWR cut its planned investment in the project in 2012 from €50-million to €5-million.

Contact Details for Project Information
NWR, tel +31 20 570 2200 or email info@nwrgroup.eu.