On March 30, the 51210 longwall mining face at Guojiawan Coal Mine, CHN Energy Yulin Energy, was commissioned. With an average mining height of 2.8 meters, supported by 286 shields, and a scraper conveyor length reaching 502 meters, this is China’s first longwall mining face reaching 500 meters in length, marking a significant breakthrough in high-yield and high-efficiency mining operations.
Compared with conventional mining faces, the ultra-long longwall face effectively reduces the roadway development, minimizes sectional coal pillar retention, substantially enhances resource recovery rates, and reduces the frequency of face relocations, thereby lowering production and operational costs. To ensure successful commissioning, Yulin Energy mobilized a technical team that, through detailed calculations and repeated assessments, overcame numerous technical challenges associated with ultra-long face operations, including strong ground pressure, reliability of large-scale equipment, equipment integration, and intelligent coordinated control. Following commissioning, the mining face achieved a single-cut coal output of 2,033 tonnes and a single-shift output of 10,165 tonnes, representing a 43% increase in production efficiency and achieving dual enhancements in energy supply assurance and operational efficiency.
Following the commissioning of the 500-meter ultra-long longwall mining face, Yulin Energy will continue to address challenges related to equipment operation, ground pressure control, and production organization, providing important practical references and demonstration for efficient and intensive mining in coal mines with similar geological conditions and production scales in China.
