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Capsule News

The Complete Inert Mine Seal Solution - Strata Mine Services and On Site Gas Systems

Strata Mine Services LLC and On Site Gas Systems Inc. have announced a strategic partnership to expand their mine seal construction and behind-seal inerting capabilities to provide a comprehensive solution for US coal mines. 

"Every mine eventually needs ventilation seals built, as well as assistance with nitrogen inerting. Bringing these companies together, and offering nitrogen generators as part of seal installation, provides mine operators with a convenient and cost-effective solution," says Jeff Hamrick, vice president and general manager of Strata Mine Services. 

Strata Mine Services currently offers two mine seal products that are MSHA approved under Final Rule 30 CFR Part 75, and additional designs are currently pending approval. Available now and approved for both the 120psi and 50psi segments of the regulations: the Stratacrete Plug Seal and the PMR Reinforced Seal.

The Stratacrete Plug Seal is designed with two formwalls constructed across the entry and remotely filled with a concrete mix called Stratacrete. As the width, or coverage of the seal, increases, so does its strength. The PMR Reinforced Seal is constructed by anchoring rebar into the mine's roof and floor, then wiring it with 3D welded wire mesh. This forms a strong rib system which can then be fully coated with high-strength gunite or shotcrete. The gunite is sprayed to overlap all edges and create an airtight seal.

Through the new partnership with On Site Gas, Strata Mine Services now also offers the additional service of inerting seal atmospheres during construction and until the seal reaches full strength.

On Site Gas nitrogen generators provide a safe and economical solution to inerting the atmosphere within sealed mine areas; either from a nearby underground location or from above ground. Generating nitrogen on location offers significant savings over the cost of liquid delivered through a borehole, both in terms of convenience and the mine's financial bottom line. The nitrogen can be made on-site for the duration of a project, eliminating the need for local gas supplier deliveries.

On Site Gas CEO Guy Hatch says that mines will certainly benefit from this joint effort.  "Each company has a great reputation within the industry for the products and services they provide," he said. "By working together, we can offer a complete and easy solution to the mines."   

Strata Mine Services is a division of Strata Products Worldwide LLC. For more information, please visit www.stratamineservices.com  or call 740/695-6880.

For additional information or to review the complete product line,

please visit www.onsitegas.com or call 860/667-8888.  

MSTC TO GIVE AWARDS TO INDIVIDUALS IN THE COAL INDUSTRY

The Mine Safety Technology Consortium (MSTC) in Montgomery, WV, is now accepting nominations from the public for awards to be presented at the second annual Miners' Celebration.

The theme for this year's Miners' Celebration conference is "Because of You…"

"It is our goal to recognize individuals employed in the coal mining industry for all the ways they impact their communities and the industry they serve.  There are a great number of miners out there who have made a difference in their communities and the industry, and we want to publicly recognize them for their efforts." Remarked Dennis Jarvis, II, MSTC director.

MSTC invites you to nominate a miner to be recognized at the 2010 Miners' Celebration.  The award winner could be your father, a former boss, or the man who saved your life in the mines -- but it won't happen unless someone nominates them.  Nominations can be submitted via fax (304/981-6065) mail (Mine Safety Technology Consortium, 326 Third Av, Ste 304, Montgomery, WV 25136), e-mail (dennis@wvmstc.org), or submitted online at: www.NominateAMiner.com  Jarvis emphasized, "We are making it easy to nominate someone." 

For a nomination to be considered, it must be submitted no later than May 3, 2010.  Nominations must consist of a short essay, detailing why the nominee is worthy of a nomination.  Nominations will be considered by an award panel on any of the following criteria: Heroism, Innovation, Community Involvement.

MSTC was established by Congressman Nick J. Rahall II. The primary mission of MSTC is to aid in the expansion of research, development and manufacturing opportunities and to ensure that West Virginia leads the nation in mine safety, health technology and equipment. To achieve these goals, MSTC is committed to supporting new and existing businesses whose focus is to develop technology as well as knowledge-based products and systems dedicated to improving mine safety throughout the industry. The second annual Miners' Celebration advances the mission of MSTC by acknowledging the contributions of miners and by providing a platform to review new technology and resources for the mining industry.

The 2010 Miners' Celebration will provide three tracks of presentations and speakers with a theme of continued development and progress in the WV mining industry. The three tracks this year are: Coal Technology Development, Coal Heritage Development and Coalfields Community Development.

Speakers for the 2010 Miners' Celebration include: Congressman Nick J. Rahall, II (invited); State Senator Mike Green; Mike Castle, former Director of the WVDEP, Christi Bailey, Director of the National Coal Heritage Area, Jeff Woods, Director of the Coalfield Community Development Office; the West Virginia Division of Energy, VISE, Dr. Tony Szwilski, from Marshall University; Tammy Horn, Eastern Kentucky University; CEDAR; and companies and historians serving various aspects of the mining industry.

Sponsors for the 2010 Miners' Celebration include: Liberty Hydrologic Systems, Brickstreet Insurance, and www.MiningConnection.com  Additional sponsorships and exhibitor space available. (For more information contact MSTC at 304/734-6620.

Special room rates are available at The Resort at Glade Springs for everyone attending the conference. The Inn: $150 +tax per night and a 10 percent resort service fee. Executive Suites: $105 +tax per night and a 10 percent resort service fee. Reservations may be made by calling 877/783-3308 by May 2nd. For additional details please contact MSTC or visit www.NominateAMiner.com  for resort info, and for room descriptions visit www.GladeSprings.com

The "Because of You…" theme was created by Presidio Studios, an ad agency based in Lewisburg, WV. "The project has our team pretty excited.  It's nice to have a project with such merit on our plates," commented Timothy Luce, president of Presidio Studios.  Presidio shot the flagship image of the miners helmet using their  EDRi™ photography process, which results in a greater visual depth to the image -- with an emotional connection. Luce further remarked "Normal photography just wouldn't cut it for the visceral connection we needed."

2010 Miners' Celebration Advisory Committee includes: Dennis Jarvis, Bridgemont Community & Technical College; Teresa Buckland; Dr. Tony Szwilski, Marshall University Center for Environmental, Geotechnical and Applied Sciences (CEGAS); Christy Bailey, National Coal Heritage Area; Tara Elder, Women's Business & Training Center; and Lisa Lilly, WorkForce West Virginia,

 

Carroll Technologies Group Expands Again

Now Servicing the Industry with 11 Operations Centers

Carroll Technologies Group, America's largest independent electronic services organization to the coal industry, today announces the opening of its new operations center for sales and service in Knoxville, Kentucky. According to Mike Hastings, President of Carroll Technologies, "This new office reflects our ongoing commitment to staying close to our customers. Over the past three years our business has grown substantially -- both in terms of sales as well as geographic coverage. To properly support our over 800 customers, we need to be close to them to respond promptly to their product needs, their calls for service, and to have spare parts in close proximity.        

The new Knoxville branch will be managed by Jimmy Coldiron, a 13-year veteran of the coal mining industry. Carroll Technologies' new operations center is located at:

6822 Barger Pond Way, Knoxville, TN 37912

Telephone: 865/859-9839, Fax: 865/859-9841

E-mail: jc@carrollengineeringco.com

               

Like the company's other operations centers, the new Knoxville center will include sales, service, repair operations as well as an extensive spare parts depot. Also, it will provide around the clock responsiveness to customer calls for help through Carroll's networked MinerCare 24/7™ service organization.          

Mike Hastings also indicated that the company is in the process of preparing plans to open several additional operations centers this year. The company now has 11 offices and maintains an inventory of over $6 million in parts, components, and replacement spares. Hastings stated that, "Our customers operate 24 hours a day. Mine stoppages cost money. When they need service or a spare, they need it right away -- not in days or weeks. We continue to open operations centers to properly support our customers. We've got to be where the business is happening."

Carroll Technologies Group, consisting of Delta Electric, Inc. and Carroll Engineering Co., has been servicing the mining industry in North America for over 30 years. From its early history in the coalfields of West Virginia and Kentucky, Carroll Technologies Group has expanded to become the largest privately held and best electronic services group in the USA, providing over 800 mines with advanced technology communications, employee and equipment tracking systems, safety monitoring systems, and a broad range of other safety equipment.  Today Carroll Technologies Group and its two operating subsidiaries -- Carroll Engineering Co. and Delta Electric Inc.—service the needs of mining companies with a network of  11 distribution centers and Miner Care 24/7™ support offices strategically located in 6 states. 

For more information visit:

Carroll Technologies Group Corporatesite: www.carrolltechnologiesgroup.com

Carroll Engineering Co. site: www.carrollengineeringco.com

Delta Electric Inc. www.deltaelectricwv.com

 

BREATHING DEVICES RECALLED

 

Upward of 4,000 emergency breathing devices are being recalled from US coal mines after the manufacturer, CSE Corp., discovered a problem that could have prevented the units from starting properly.  The recall involves CSE's SR-100, the most widely used self-contained self-rescuer, or SCSR, in the nation's coal industry.  An estimated 70,000 units are in the field.  Officials from the US Mine Safety and Health Administration and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health are making a joint investigation.  Scott Shearer, president of CSE, said the recall is isolated to one lot of SCSRs that was manufactured in May 2009. The company believes less than 1 percent of that lot of 5,000 units may be affected, but is recalling all 4,071 from the lot that had already been sold.

 

NMA LAUNCHES SAFETYSHARE.ORG WEBSITE

 

The National Mining Association has launched the SafetyShare.Org Website, an informational online site that harnesses tools, resources and practices aimed at mine safety advancements that all of the nation's 380,000 mineworkers could implement.

The online format allows any interested individual to immediately access the practices, procedures and presentations outlined in the resources.  The association pointed out that the US has recorded its two safest years in history, and that 2009 performance numbers surpassed those in 2008.  "While these results are gratifying, mining continues to look to new initiatives and opportunities to foster continued improvement and excellence in health and safety performance at US mining operations," NMA said.

According to NMA statistics, coal production has increased 89 percent since 1970 while fatal injuries have decreased by 81 percent.  Over the last 16 years injury rates have fallen by two-thirds.   More than half the nation's mines have operated each year without a single lost-time work injury.  In 2009, that percentage was 86 percent.  Other NMA safety initiatives include Drive Safe, Arrive Safe, Safety First: Stay Alert; and Stay Away, Stay Alive.

Massey Energy has signed a definitive agreement to buy Cumberland Resources of Abingdon, VA, and its affiliated companies for $960 million. Cumberland is one of the largest privately held coal producers in the US with 2009 coal revenues of $550 million generated from the production and sale of 7.8 million tons of high-quality central Appalachian coal.  Massey will acquire Cumberland free of debt.  Cumberland's assets include an estimated 416 million tons of contiguous coal reserves, a preparation plant in Kentucky served by the CSX railroad, and a preparation plant in Virginia served by the Norfolk Southern railroad.

 

Outlook for thermal and metallurgical coal is good in 2010 with price increases expected to remain above historical averages for the next five years, ABARE forecasts.  Thermal coal contract prices are expected to increase in 2010 with import demands from India, Korea, Taiwan and Japan.  Chinese imports are expected to remain steady, while India imports are expected to double from 2009 to 2015.  Between 2011-12 and 2014-15, Australia's thermal coal exports are forecast to grow at an average annual rate of 9 percent.  Metallurgical coal is expected to remain strong with world trade forecast to increase 9 percent in 2010 and 6 percent each following year through 2015.

 

The Greater Bluefield Chamber of Commerce, Bluefield, WV, has joined the FACES of Coal alliance and is urging companies to do the same.  The Federation for American Coal, Energy and Security (FACES of Coal) is an alliance of people from all walks of life who are joining forces to educate lawmakers and the general public about the importance of coal and coal mining to local and national economies and to the nation's energy security.  Visit the website at www.facesofcoal.org  and acknowledge your support.  Applications to join are available.  Fax 304/342-6905.

 

Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington have found a practical way to make synthetic crude from inexpensive coal that's common in Texas.  Although coal-to-oil has been around for over 100 years, researchers at UTA say they've invented a better way to do it.  Texas lignite coal is cheap, less than $18 a ton.  A ton of this coal could produce up to 1.5 barrels of oil.  UTA researchers expect micro-refineries to be built within a year, turning coal into cheap oil and producing new jobs.

 

The American Le Mans Series has joined forces with American Forests to support its "dollar-a-tree" Global ReLeaf program.  In support of American Forests' goal to plant 100 million trees by 2020, the Series pledges to plant more than 5,000 trees in 2010 to restore ecosystems that have been damaged by fire, disease, other natural disasters and overdevelopment.  For every three trees planted, roughly one ton of carbon will be sequestered, allowing for over 1,666 tons of CO2 to be taken out of the atmosphere overall, and every acre of trees planted (approximately 340-490 trees) by the Series will offset about the amount of CO2 produced by driving a car 26,000 miles.

 

Bathurst Resources has acquired BD Acquisition, which owns the Black Diamond coal mine and other exploration assets in the Appalachian Basin in Kentucky.  The Australian company has established eight underground and three open cut mines on the Kentucky tenements, producing 2.5 million tons per year.  A $19 million, 9,000-ton-per-hour coal preparation and a rail load-out facility at Spurlock was added along with an upgrade to the Ivel plant to 500tph capacity.  Holding 56,000 acres of coal reserves for some 115 million tons of recoverable coal reserves, Bathurst expects to kick off coal mining within three months of the completed acquisition.  The Australian company is aiming to produce 3Mtpa from the Black Diamond assets, leading to a mine life of more than 30 years.

 

An air pollution permit has been approved for a proposed coal-to-gasoline plant in Mingo County, WV.  The WV Dept. of Environmental Protection issued the permit to TransGas Development LLC of New York.  The Wharncliffe facility is expected to turn 3 million tons of coal a year into methanol that would then be converted into as many as 756,000 gallons of gasoline a day.

 

Erora Group, Louisville, KY, is asking for a state law that would require utilities to buy electricity from facilities like its proposed coal-to-natural gas manufacturing plant in Western Kentucky.   Erora said that it would be able to complete financing for its Cash Creek Project if utilities were compelled to buy electricity from producers of renewable and alternative forms of energy.  The Cash Creek Project is designed to gasify 2.8 million tons per year of Kentucky coal to produce natural gas.  The project promises 1,500 construction jobs, 150 to 300 permanent jobs, and $100 million annually in economic activity from the plant, to be built in Henderson County.

 

American Electric Power, Columbus, OH, has been named one of the top 50 companies for executive women by the National Association for Female Executives.  The list recognizes organizations whose programs and policies support women's advancement and who have significant female representation in senior management and on boards of directors.

 

The Ohio Air Quality Development Authority (OAQDA), Columbus, OH, has approved an award of $108,698 Ohio Coal Development Office Grant to Touchstone Research Laboratory of Wheeling, WV, for a pilot project to study the capture of flue gas carbon dioxide by pass the gas through an algae pond at Cedar Lane Farms in Wooster.  Touchstone will demonstrate, at pilot scale, that waste heat and carbon dioxide from the flue gas of a coal-based boiler at Cedar Lane Farms can be used in a year-round algae production process to produce a transportation fuel and electricity.

 

The Carpenter Creek and the Snider Ranch mines, approximately 50 miles from Billings, MT, have estimated reserves of 623.2 million short tons of coal.  Carpenter Creek is planning to be operational by 2012-13 and produce as much as 6 million tons a year.  Snider Ranch is slated to go on line by late 2013 and produce around 4 million tons a year.  Production will be dependent on excess capacity at the nearby Signal Peak Mine, it is reported by the Montana Coal Council (MCC).    MCC has an agreement with Sumitomo, a Japanese utility conglomerate, to market its coal in Japan and other Asian markets.  MCC's plans underscore an industry push to mine Montana's relatively underdeveloped coal reserves.  Montana has the most coal reserves of any state at 119.1 billion tons, according to EIA, although only 44.78 million tons were produced for the year.

 

The Energy Department has filed to withdraw an application for a nuclear-waste repository at Yucca Mountain, and hopes to develop a new plan for a long-term disposal of nuclear waste.  The Energy Department has established a panel to make recommendations.  The application had been pending with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission since June 2008.

 

Power plant developer Tenaska of Omaha, NB, reports a planned 602-megawatt Taylorville, IL, coal-to-gas power plant would cost about $3.5 billion and would enter service in 2014.  The plant will use Siemens AG's integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) technology to convert Illinois coal into pipeline quality substitute natural gas and then burn the gas to produce electricity.   Taylorville will use two combustion turbines and one steam generator to power up to 600,000 Illinois homes.  The facility will be located on a 713-acre site near Taylorville in Christian County, about 35 miles southeast of Springfield, the state capital.  The project expects to create about 2,400 jobs during construction and about 155 full-time positions after entering commercial operation.  It will add about $126 million a year to the local economy.

 

Quest Minerals and Mining of Kentucky is nearing its production goal of 10,000 tons per month as it adds a Joy 14-9 miner to its main equipment line.  The unit will work with a second 14-9 miner.  Both pieces of equipment are capable of generating from 1300 to 1500 raw tons of coal each in an eight-hour shift.

 

Mincom and Marston have partnered to jointly market Mincom's mining solutions to North American operations. The Mincom Intelligent Mining Solution suite encompasses all facets of the mining process, from exploration to outbound logistics as well as sales and asset management functions.

 

Komatsu America Corp., Rolling Meadows, IL, commemorated the production of the 930th unit of its Ultra Class 930E Electric Drive Truck at its Peoria manufacturing operation.  Komatsu designs and builds the 930E electric drive truck in Peoria where craftsmen assemble and test the final product before shipping it around the world.  Currently there are fleets of 930s located in North America, South America, Africa, Asia and Australia.  The 930E is used as a part of Komatsu's Autonomous Haulage System that allows the trucks to operate without drivers, and is often used for remote and difficult applications.  The 930E has a payload capacity of 320 tons and is available with 2,700 or 3,500 horsepower diesel engine connected to an AC electric drive system.  The total weight carried by the six 12' high tires is 1,106,670 lbs.

 

Essar Group has signed a definitive agreement to buy Trinity Coal Partners from private equity firm Denham Capital for $600 million for producing mines in Kentucky and West Virginia and a resource base of 200 million tons.  Trinity is currently producing 7Mtpa of coal with plans to increase annual production to 10Mt.  Output is split equally between metallurgical coal and steam coal. The company operates six mining complexes with a total of 10 surface mines, three underground mines and six highwall miner units in the Central Appalachian coal basin. Trinity is based in Scott Depot, WV, and employs about 650 people.

 

CONSOL Energy Inc. is implementing a new water treatment system at the Buchanan No. 1 coal mine in Oakwood, VA.  Buchanan will receive GE's advanced filtration membranes and thermal water treatment technology to treat the mine water, enabling about 99 percent of the water to be reused in part at the company's preparation plant facility. When in operation, the new system will significantly reduce the volume of mine water that must be managed.  It will reduce freshwater demand as the processed water coming out of the system can be used at the mine's preparation plant facility, reducing the need to obtain water from other sources.  GE's system incorporates GE's ZeeWeed ultra filtration technology, which employs hollow-fiber membranes to separate particles from water, and GE's reverse osmosis separation technology, which removes dissolved impurities from water through the use of a semi-permeable membrane.

 

The US Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration,  has recognized Fisher Sand & Gravel Co., Dickinson, ND, Rocky Mountain District, with three awards for outstanding safety achievements in 2008.  The awards are for "Man Hours Worked without any Lost Time Accident," as well as for being "Citation Free" during two mandatory inspections.  Three Fisher sites were recognized: the Billings, MT site managed by Jim Rahr; the Glendive, MT site, managed by Loren Boese and one of the portable North Dakota operations managed by Joel Meyer.  In addition, Fisher Sand & Gravel was honored with 13 Safe Mine Achievement Awards for 2008.  Five were certificates of honor awards, recognizing work hours performed without a fatal accident or permanent disability and work hours performed without incurring a lost workday injury.  The remaining eight awards were Safe Mine Achievement Awards for efforts to reduce violations, accidents and injuries.

 

Engineering Consulting Services, Inc. (ECSI), Lexington, KY, is a finalist in the American Council of Engineering Companies' 44th annual Engineering Excellence Awards competition for the Portal 32 Exhibition Mine in Lynch, KY.  ECSI worked with museum and exhibit designers to transform a deactivated mine portal into a high-tech museum that showcases Kentucky's coal mining heritage, from the days of picks and shovels to modern equipment.  Portal 31 is the last leg of a series of area attractions.  The project is among 163 engineering projects from throughout the nation that are being recognized by ACEC as preeminent engineering achievements for 2009.

 

Dana Resources, Las Vegas, NV, has entered into a letter of intent to acquire a 100 percent interest in the Chota Silver Mine in Peru, for aggregate consideration of $425,000 plus a yet-to-be-determined number of shares.  The Chota Mine is located within the Alto Chicama mining district of Peru.

 

Consol Energy Inc., Richmond, VA, has agreed to buy Dominion Resources Inc.'s Appalachian exploration and production business for $3.475 billion, substantially increasing its natural gas reserves and production capacity.  Consol will acquire a total of 1.46 million oil and gas acres from Dominion along with over 9,000 producing wells, it is reported.  Once complete, the coal and natural gas company said it will take a leading position in the strategic Marcellus Shale, a rock bed that lies about 6,000 feet beneath New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio.  It is potentially the country's most productive natural gas source.

 

Xinergy of Tennessee has a purchase agreement with JMP Coal Holdings to acquire Raven Crest Mining of West Virginia for $40 million.  Raven's portfolio includes 17 million tons of recoverable high-quality reserves.  The company operates surface complexes in Boone County, WV.  Xinergy's current active coal properties are located in eastern Kentucky and Alabama.

 

Arch Coal Inc. has acquired a 35 percent interest in the Trailblazer Energy Center, a clean fossil-fuel power plant being developed by Tenaska Inc. in Texas.  Arch will supply the plant's fuel needs for its first 20 years of operation from the company's Powder River Basin operations in Wyoming.  Trailblazer will emit 70 percent less carbon dioxide than the cleanest natural gas-based power plants.

 

Battelle Memorial Institute of Columbus (OH) will develop an improved computer model to refine current estimates of carbon dioxide storage capacity in western Ohio, following an award of $500,000 Ohio Coal Development Office (OCDC) grant. The award was approved from the $150 million Ohio Advanced Energy Job Stimulus Plan. The project will use available data from existing waste injection wells, oil and gas exploration wells and geologic core analyses, focusing on the "Arches Province" geologic formation that underlies parts of Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Michigan.

 

Rosebud Mining of Pennsylvania has acquired the Windber Coal Heritage Center for $250,000 and plans to reopen later this year. The center holds industry artifacts including those from the Quecreek mine disaster.  Rosebud will set up a non-profit group to oversee the museum in Windber, about 90 minutes from Pittsburgh, and control its exhibits.