Bogdanka Coal Mine

Bogdanka Coal Mine

Location
Bogdanka coal mine Location in Poland
Location	Puchaczów
town	Lublin Voivodeship
Country	Poland
Coordinates
Production
Products	Coal
History
Opened	1975
Owner
Website	http://www.bogdanka.eu

general view of the LW Bogdanka

mine shaft in Bogdanka

Bogdanka - in the mine

Bogdanka - cutter-loader face

Bogdanka - coal plought

The Bogdanka Coal Mine (Lubelski Węgiel "Bogdanka" S.A.) is a coal mine in the village of Bogdanka near Łęczna, in the vicinity of Lublin, 197 km south-east of the capital, Warsaw, in the Lublin Coal Field. The mineral licence area where extraction is taking place is located in the commune of Puchaczów.

In 1975, the construction of first in the coal field this “pilot” mine, was began. Today, the mine is known as Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. In 2009, the net profit of the mine was PLN 190.84 million with coal extraction at 5.6 million tonnes[1]. In 2014, the mine reached net profit of PLN 272.35 million while mining 9.2 million tonnes of coal. Bogdanka is currently the most profitable coal mine in Poland. In the first quarter of 2015, the market situation of Lubelski Węgiel has worsened – coal sales fell by 12.5 percent, its extraction – by 11 percent, and net profit – by 47.8 percent, which resulted in announcing plans to cut jobs and investment.

History

Mineral deposit research

First note about finding coal in the Volhynia area, at a depth of 15 m, was mentioned by W. Choroszewski in Pamiętnik Fizjograficzny (Physiographic Diary) in 1881. Thirty years later, in 1911, a Russian geologist, M. Tetaev, formulated a hypothesis, based on the general knowledge of the geology of this part of Europe, that formations from Carboniferous period may occur in the west slope of the Ukrainian crystalline massif. The massif was investigated by geologist Prof. J. Samsonowicz, who in 1931 found Carboniferous flint nodules while exploring the area of Pełcza in the west of Volhynia. A year later, he presented his concept of the occurrence of Carboniferous formations, along with their hypothetical distribution, in the western Volhynia and southern Polesie. In the interwar period, prospecting commenced. In 1938, in Tartaków productive carbon was found at a depth of 239 m, and this date is now considered to mark the beginning of exploration of the Volhynia and Lublin coal basin. Interrupted by World War II, the exploration resumed in the fifties – in 1955, an exploration drill-hole was made in Chełm, where carbon was found at depths from 580 to 1208 m. The drilling (six drill-holes) and geophysical research initiated by Instytut Geologiczny (Polish Geological Institute) led in 1964 Centralny Urząd Geologiczny (Central Geological Office) to undertake decision about begin exploration and research drilling and prospecting led by the Upper Silesian Branch of the Polish Geological Institute, based in Sosnowiec. In 1965, first samples of coal were extracted from the Łęczna IG-1 drill-hole. In the years that followed, the Lublin deposit was being described by a team headed by mgr. inż. J. Porzycki. In January 1975, the Council of Ministers passed Resolution No. 15/75, which gave the go-ahead to the construction of a pilot mine, Kopalnia Pilotująco-Wydobywcza LZW w Bogdance, and under Ordinance No. 4, the Minister of Mining and Energy established a state-owned enterprise, Kopalnie Lubelskiego Zagłębia Węglowego w Budowie.

Warsaw Stock Exchange

On 25 June 2009, the Company’s shares were floated on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The issue brought PLN 528 million to the State Treasury. The next stage of privatisation took place on 9 March 2010. On that day, the Ministry of State Treasury sold on the stock exchange a 46.7% stake in Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka for over PLN 1.1 billion, with each share priced at PLN 70.50[4]. Following this transaction, the State Treasury was left with a 4.97% stake in the mine 25 June 2009 its shares were floated on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. In return, the Polish Treasury received 528 million zł. The next stage of privatization took place on 9 March 2010 and the Treasury sold 46.7% of the shares for over 1.1 billion zloty. Following this transaction, the Treasury retained 4.97% of the mine. In subsequent years, the State Treasury was reducing their participation in the share capital of the Lubelski Węgiel BOGDANKA S.A.

The structure of shareholders of Lubelski Węgiel BOGDANKA S.A. at the end of 1H 2015 is illustrated in the following Table:

Shareholder	Share in the share capital [%]
OFE Aviva BZ WBK	15,1631
OFE PZU Złota Jesień	9,7619
ING OFE	9,6313
Others	65,4437

Bogdanka today

Location

Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. is the only coal mine in the Lublin Coal Field. The Bogdanka mine is located in the Central Coal Region, which lies in the north-east of the Lublin Coal Field beingits best explored area. Geographically, the Central Coal Region is part of the Lublin Polesie, and only small parts of it extend into the Lublin Upland. In administrative terms, the Bogdanka mine is located in the lubelskie voivodship Province, in the commune of Puchaczów.

Deposit

The extractable coal reserves are approx. 243 million tonnes[5]. It is gas-flame coal. The depth of mining ranges from 860 to 1100 m. The size of the mine’s mineral licence area is 73.3 km2.

Description

Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka S.A. is one of the leading coal producers in Poland, standing out in the industry in terms of financial performance, productivity, and investment plans to access new deposits. The coal sold by the Company is mostly used to produce electricity, heat and cement. The Company's customers are mainly industrial companies, especially entities operating in the power industry, located in the east and north-east of Poland.

Production

At the moment, LW Bogdanka employs approx. 4,930 people (2014). Daily extraction is approx. 37,000 tonnes.

Annual coal production in the LWB Bogdanka S.A.

	Production ('000 tonne)
2007	5 121
2008	5 576
2009	5 300
2010	5 800
2011	5 838
2012	7 785
2013	8 345
2014	9 191

External links

• http://lw.com.pl/en,2,start,s119.html Official site]