UrBC, Yekaterinburg, November 27, 2018. EVRAZ Holding acquired a new large-hole drilling unit to make vertical holes up to 2.4 meters in diameter. This si the first time this equipment type will get used at a Russian coal-making enterprise; the unit will get launched at EVRAZ Raspadskaya Coal Company’s mines, the holding’s press service reports.

Performance tests for the large-hole drilling technology are scheduled to take place at Yerunakovskaya 8 Mine. A pilot hole (diameter: 279 mm; depth: 500 m) will be made first. Next, a special widening unit will get attached to the drilling assembly to gradually widen the diameter to 2.5 meters.

Raspadskaya Coal Company intends to use large holes for venting and management of excess gases. Typically, a wide gas-draining pipeline network 1.5 to 2 kilometers long needs to be built for the removal of gases, which takes eighteen months, at least. Large holes are three times faster to drill and are a quick and efficient way to vent the mines and drain all the methane, which makes the mining process much safer.