EU Grant to Cut Methane Emissions at Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa

Polish coal giant JSW SA announced the launch of new methane emission reduction programs, the budget of which will amount to EUR 23 million, during 7 September conference "Methane from hard coal mines - current status and challenges". The first project - the Methane Emission Reduction program received a record grant of 11. This is the largest EU grant that has been awarded to the Polish mining industry, thanks to which the first dedicated installation in the world to reduce methane emissions to the atmosphere from abandoned areas of the mine will be built at the JSW mine "Pniówek". The REM project will start with research that will determine the level and places of methane accumulation in the closed areas of the "Pniówek" mine. The paths of gas migration to the ventilation air will also be determined. On this basis, a parallel methane drainage system with a reduced gas concentration will be created. The scope of works covers both the design and construction stages. In this way, a surface methane drainage station with networks of underground pipelines with methane intakes, a measurement system and an automatic control room will be built in "Pniówek".The methane obtained from the mining goaf will be used to produce electricity in gas engines connected to power generators. The implementation of the project will allow the reduction of methane emissions by 19 million m3 per year and the production of 60 thousand m3 in the process of its utilization. MWh of electricity.Ultimately, the project will be implemented in all JSW mines. It can also be successfully used in every multi-level hard coal mine in the world with a structure similar to the Coal Mine "Pniówek".JSW is already a leader in mine methane drainage with an efficiency of 35-42%, with the world average not exceeding 30 percent. This mainly applies to methane taken from the seams in which production is carried out. Meanwhile, methane also migrates from inactive workings, although in this case its concentration is much lower and is characterized by considerable variability.The Methane Emission Reduction Project is a research and implementation project. Its budget is almost EUR 22 million, half of which will be financed by EU funds. The project is carried out by a consortium of scientific and research institutes associated with JSW in the Methane Excellence Center of ICE-CMM Poland Mines. The leading partner is JSW, and thanks to the involvement of the Central Mining Institute, it was possible to acquire foreign partners for cooperation, i.e. research centers from Romania and Spain.