ASSESSMENT OF THE COAL RESOURCES OF THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC:

COAL CHARACTER AND DISTRIBUTION, GEOLOGY, MINING, AND IMPORTANCE TO THE NATION'S FUTURE

USGS Open File Report 97-137A (English)

APPENDIX III. DESCRIPTIONS OF SITE VISITS

a. Alay Coal Region

1. - Kyzyl-Bulak Area

This area is the site of a new open-cut mine operated by a small enterprise. The mine is located about 40 km west of Sary Tash. The coal is contained in a Lower Jurassic unit referred to by mine personnel as the coal-bearing formation. The presence of coal was unreported till very recently when coal fragments were observed in diggings by marmots. The rocks strike north and dip steeply to the east. Only one bed, reported to be 16 m thick, is present.

Mining is by truck and excavator. Overburden is removed by bulldozer and excavator and the coal is transported by private truck to local and distant communities for domestic heating. FOB prices are reported to be about $8.40 per tonne to local users, and at least $9.35 per tonne for more distant users. Because production has been intermittent since the mine opened in 1994, tonneage figures are sketchy, but during October of this year an average of 100 tonnes per day has been produced. This property is currently being explored, and at the time of our visit one core hole had been completed to a depth of 194 m, and a second core hole was being drilled. Future exploration plans call for at least five additional exploration drill holes in the immediate area of the open-cast mine.

b. South Fergana Coal Region

1. Kyzyl-Kiya Area

The mine at Kyzyl-Kiya operates the Lenin-Komsomol shafts and workings 6 km southeast of the town of Kyzyl-Kiya and produces sub-bituminous coal. The market for local uses demands lump coal so there is a screening plant. Until the recent economic/political disruption, fine coal was shipped by rail to thermal plants in Uzbekistan and Kazakstan. Mining started at the end of the last century, and the present mine produced about 450 K.T./year in the mid '70s and again toward the end of the '80s. The present two shafts (700 m deep), plus a slope and ventilation portals date from about 1964. Several other mines are, or have been, operated from this mine headquarters and supply point, with coal hauled here for shipping, so production, size, reserves, etc. may be confused in some reports.

The mine is essentially shut down now because a spontaneous fire in a longwall gob area was incompletely controlled by grout sealing. Further steps to control the fire are in progress, but bad air and high temperature (reported as 35-40 C) limit the operation, and commercial production is just incidental to the cleanup. Our statements about the "present" mine may not, therefore, imply any future. The coal seam is about 8 m thick, with two 3.5 m benches separated by a clay parting. The strata dip 60 deg. in the upper levels and flatten to 18 deg. at 700 m depth. Longwall mining has been done in two benches, with a year interval between, and where possible entries have been driven in rock to provide longer life. In spite of the 12 M.T. balance reserves, the viability of the mine is in doubt because of the fire and the great depth of the operation.

Coal character has been reported as 24% moisture, 20% ash, 0.7% sulfur, 37% VM and 6700 Kc/Kg heating value (daf). The number of analyses and type of samples in these averages is not reported.

2. Almalyk Area

The Almalyk opencast mine produces sub-bituminous coal from pits about 25 km southwest of Osh; it opened in 1961. Production is from a single seam, "Kyzylkiyskiy", about 29 meters thick, though it contains clay partings in the upper portion which total 4 to 9 meters in thickness. The dip of the seam is reported as 12 to 55 deg. south in the present pit which is on the south flank of an anticline that was probably mined earlier at its crest. Farther south the seam forms a syncline or is cut off by a thrust fault below Paleozoic rocks. Overburden rock is presently hauled by trucks about 2.5 km, after excavation at an average ratio of 16 cubic meters per ton of coal. Landslides are very extensive in the pit, and are said to be a cause of significant drop in production even before the present difficult situation with shortages of spare parts and uncertain payments for the product. The coal is screened near the mine and, at least until recently, was shipped by rail from a station 37 km from the mine.

About 40% of the produced coal is fines (< 13mm), which formerly was sold to plants in Uzbekistan and Kazakstan. Presently the price for graded (13-50 mm) coal is said to be 185 som/ton fob mine, and for >50 mm lump is 225 som/ton. Four years ago production was 400,000 tonnes/year, from more than 500 workers. In 1994 production is expected to be only 80,000 tonnes, with about 400 workers.

Blasted overburden is loaded by 5, 8, and 10 cubic meter electric shovels into two 40-ton trucks. Water is not a problem in this pit. Local managers said that only one more cut is planned, and surface operations will cease, though a report dated as recently as 1993 listed commercial reserves of 19 M.T and expected pit life of 60 years.

The operation has proved 1 million cubic meters of cement grade limestone available for development.

An experimental sublevel caving mine is planned at the 1200 m level with the 15 m deep concrete portal to be installed in the coal face below apparently-stable highwall. Experienced underground miners from Kyzyl-Kiya are due to start this work in November, 1994; eventually, it is expected that many local miners can be trained for underground work. Anticipated production is 110,000 tonnes/year, with a minimum 5 year life.

3. Valakish Area

The Valakish mine (probably at a deposit sometimes named Uch-Korgon) is 27 km by road south of Kyzyl-Kiya. The coal seam is essentially vertical, about 15 meters thick in much of the mine, and thins to 4 meters in the upper portion of the mine. Reserves of 3 million tonnes have been blocked out, though exploration is incomplete, and the initial production target is 110,000 tonnes/year. The mining system is an adaption of sub-level caving. Entries are driven in country rock, including a 400 m slope with belt haulage to the surface. A horizontal entry is driven off the slope bottom with cross cuts driven off at angles to the entry into the thick coal seam, using yieldable arches and lagging. Overhead drilling locations are supported with hydraulic posts and heavy timber lagging. These holes are drilled fan-wise overhead twenty meters into the coal, and then loaded and lightly blasted to induce caving. The caved coal is loaded out, working under the heavy timber lagging, onto a chain conveyor and thence out to the slope belt.

Level entries are planned at 20 meters intervals. The system is working according to plan, although we had the impression that one diagonal that "should" have been in rock was actually cut in coal and corners were difficult to maintain.

Unfortunately about 50% fines (< 13mm) are produced, and after screening these are presently stockpiled for lack of market. (We estimate about 2,000 tonnes in the pile.) All coarser coal is sold for household heating and hauled away by single or dual-axle trucks. Except for one kilometer of steep road to the mine, the road through the populated areas is level and asphalted. A 30 ton scale was nearly complete at the mine at the time of our visit. The outside beltways, screens and bins are in the shade much of the winter so sometimes the mine is down because of freezing. And currently diesel fuel for the trucks (probably mostly private) is in short supply. This innovative mine (similar in some ways to the operation in Dzhergalan, though much smaller) is said to produce coal at 80 to 90 som/ton, and the near future looks bright. The exact relationship to the Kyzyl-Kiya coal operations is not clear. Valakish seems to be simply an offshoot, but some people spoke of a "more independent operation than in the past". A small open pit on a nearby saddle was operated by miners from Abshir at one time, but we could not determine the potential for renewed operation there.

4. Abshir Area

The Abshir surface coal mine is about 22 km by road east of Kyzyl-Kiya (about 5 km into the hills from the main Osh / Kyzyl-Kiya highway). The coal seam is an overturned fold, steeply dipping to vertical. Presently mined coal is 8-10 meters thick, although a range of 3-30 meters has been reported. The coal is highly broken, producing almost no lump coal ( > 13 mm). It is sub-bituminous, with 20-23% moisture (recorded to 30%), about 25% ash, 0.9-1.5% sulfur.

Some clinker from burning exists in outcrop areas, and a small burn was observed in the pit wall. Reserves are limited to 100-300 K.T., and the economics dictate that the pit will be closed soon because the stripping ratio is now about 20 cubic meters / ton. Water is a major problem in the old pit.

A reserve of 1.2 million tonnes of minable coal in a seam about 5 m thick exist beyond the present pit at one end and development is underway with 10 cubic meters / ton ratio. Much of the present production from the developing pit is weathered coal, and it is sold as a humic soil conditioner and as additive to drilling mud. The market for both is in Uzbekistan - with significant potential if monetary exchange could be arranged.

Abshir was started in the 1930s and modernized in 1967 to reach a maximum production of 500,000 tonnes/year. In 1989 there were 480 employees, but now there are 220. Additional layoffs are planned unless there is a turnaround in production and sales. Coal is trucked the 22 km to the Kyzyl-Kiya cleaning plant. A large deposit of plaster grade gypsum is exposed at the mine and exists for several kilometers at 4:1 stripping ratio. A test shipment of 100 tonnes was made to Uzbekistan, but concrete results are not yet available, and no deal can be made until general agreements for monetary exchange between Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan are reached. A mining cost of 60-70 som/ton is estimated. There is a small test facility for gypsum processing at the mine.

c. East Fergana Coal Region

1. Kumbel Area

Kumbel is a complex of open-cut mines located about 65 km northeast of Uzghen. The area is reached by a difficult road that shows evidence of relatively recent damage by stream erosion and mudslides. We were told that the road was closed on March 8, 1994, when a mudslide covered a village along the road and killed about 50 people, some of whom are still entombed. The road was reopened in September. Coal in the Kumbel area is contained in the Lower Jurassic Tuyuk Formation. Mine personnel report a maximum of 53 coal beds, in ascending numerical order, in the sequence, although only 10 are considered to be of economic interest. Beds 9 and 22 are reported to be the thickest. The mine is actually a group of five individual properties: Tashim, Jabad, Malik, Alty Bai, and Nichke. All of these are part of the Small Enterprises Mining Program. Tashin has been operating for three years, and Jabad, Alty Bai, and Nichke started limited operation this year. Malik has yet to be developed.

We visited the Tashim site, where bed 22 is mined. The bed averages about 5.54 m thick and dips about 20 degrees to the east. The overburden is removed by shovel and bulldozer. The coal is mined by a large excavator and trucks, The trucks commonly must be assisted by bulldozer for short distances in and out of the pit. The coal is black coal (bituminous), and is shipped by private truck, presumably as far as Uzghen, for domestic heating. FOB prices are reported to be $9 per tonne with credit, and $7.50 per tonne for cash. Our observations of the site were rendered surrealistic by dense fog (cloud) and we could not observe the relationship of Tashim to the other four actual and prospective mining sites.

Mine personnel report annual production for 1993 of 8,400 tonnes, a significant decline from 1992. No reason was given. Production so far in 1994, basically the month of October, was reported as 2,000 tonnes.

2. Kara-Tyube Area

Kara-Tyube is an undeveloped coal site located about 72 km east- northeast of Uzghen. The last several kilometers of an old road are closed because of rockslides. The coal is contained in the Lower Jurassic Tuyuk Formation and crops out on the steep sides of a valley reminiscent, except for slightly less vegetation, of parts of Appalachia in the eastern United States. The beds dip at an angle of about 20 degrees. Available reports list at least nine beds. In ascending numerical order: 2, 3, 3c, 4, 4-1, 4a, 5, 5a, and 6. Beds 3 and 4 are the most significant with thicknesses of as much as 3.71 and 3.60, respectively. The coal was discovered in 1938, and during the period from 1942 to 1945 at least 16 short tunnels were driven into various beds as a form of exploration. Interest in the area resumed in 1994, but no holes have been drilled. The coal is reported to be black coal (bituminous) of coking quality. Because of a lack of demand for coking coal, this property is of low priority. However, anthracitic coal that may be desirable for domestic use is reportedly present nearby and presumably is of similar thickness and structural situation. The area containing anthracitic coal has reportedly not been explored as much as the coking coal area.

3. Kok-Yangak Area

The Kok-Yangak area is about 63 km northeast of Osh and 18 km north of the Oblast' center of Dzhalabad. The town Kok-Yangak is shown to have 10-50,000 population in the Kyrgyz atlas, and it is served by a good asphalt road (20 km from Dzhalabad) and by a rail line from Dzhalabad and farther east in the Fergana Valley. The mine was operated on the surface, perhaps as early as 1932, and since 1937 through several entries underground. The present extent is about 9.5 square km, with the 72-South and 72-North entries at the +1600 m level and the Kapital-North and Kapital-South entries at +1370m. These latter include the main haulway now. There is an entry at +1200 used as an airway and manway and for rock removal, and another entry is under construction at +1000 m with an incline up to +1200 m. This will provide gravity-flow water for development below +1200 m. Two mechanized longwall complexes have been operated, and odd-shaped sectors are worked in room and pillar system with a "roadheader-type" continuous miner. This is the only continuous miner observed during our site visits.

The mine works three seams, "5", "6", and "M" (Moshchnyy), but the latter appears to have been worked only slightly. In parts of the workings "5" and "6" are close to each other or combined so they are worked as one seam. The general structure is monoclinal in the mine, with 17-21 degree dip to the west. The coal is "D" (long-flame) rank, with 8-12% moisture, and about 7750 kc/kg (daf) calorific value. Ash is listed at 9-16%, and sulfur as 0.7 -0.9%. Written reports show 31-33% VM, but at the mine we were told of 45% unusual VM and "extra quality" utility. Recoverable reserves are stated to be 9 million tonnes out of 32 M.T. balance reserves. The expected life is stated as 13 years. A possible eastward extension to the Markay sector would add 9 M.T. balance reserves. The complicated transport net within the mine (which requires much maintenance), the long haul distances, and the rather complex geological structure at a small scale limit productive capacity to 500 K.T./year. The production in 1994 is expected to reach only 70 K.T., however, because of lack of repair parts, structural materials, etc. In a sense, they have lost market also, but that is not clearly a loss of demand, but rather a loss of cash flow within the whole economy. A few years ago 1000 workers were underground, but the present force is 450, with further reductions anticipated. Cash pay apparently stopped last spring. Coal distribution has been by rail directly from the mine, but the present low production appears to be removed by small trucks only.

d. North Fergana Coal Region

1. Tash Kumyr Area

The Tash Kumyr coal enterprise is located about 140 km northwest of Osh just north of the city of Tash Kumyr in and near the valley of the Naryn River. Four individual mining operations are currently active at the enterprise, another is under development, and at least two other mining operations were previously conducted. The coal is contained in a Lower Jurassic unit referred to by mine personnel as "the coal-bearing formation". This unit is present in a series of west-trending folds that plunge gently toward the west. At least five significant coal beds are reported. In ascending numerical order these are: 0, 3, upper 3, 3g, and 4; evidently other less important beds are also present. The main operation is an underground mine, the Severnay (northern) mine, located at the south end of the property near the mine headquarters. Bed 3, averaging 3 m thick, is currently being mined from a 120m working face by longwall methods. The longwall panel is about 500m long and will be mined out by the end of this year. The coal is removed from the mine by conveyer belt to a cleaning facility where the ash content is reduced from an average of 38% to 32% prior to loading on rail cars for transport to somewhere. Another longwall panel is being mined at another place in the mine from the 0 bed. That panel has water problems and the present panel may be the last coal available in that part of the mine. Bed 3 has recoverable reserves available in two or three more panels. Apparently the mine will be finished at that time, a few years hence.

Just north of Severnay lies the Kara Soo open cut mine. Here the 3 and 3g beds are being mined by truck and shovel with overburden being removed by dragline. Several kilometers north of Severnay and Kara Soo, two additional open cut mines are operating, Kara Tut Central and Kara Tut West. At Kara Tut Central a single coal bed is being mined by truck and shovel; at Kara Tut West a single bed is being mined by truck and shovel with overburden removed by dragline. This area is also the location of the new Tegenek underground mine, which is presently under construction. Mine personnel report the product to be black coal, which is equivalent to bituminous coal.

All of the equipment in the Severnay underground mine is well worn and extensively repaired. Two generations of longwall equipment are represented and neither is state-of-the-art. The two draglines used for overburden removal in the open-cast mines have ten cubic meter buckets with seventy meter booms. We did not inspect them but one was working, apparently efficiently.

The coal cleaning operations use a pneumatic system in conjunction with screens and, reportedly, some hand-picking, to reduce the amount of ash in the product and separate the portion more than 13mm in size from the remainder. Reportedly, the ash content is reduced from 38 or more percent to about 32 percent.

The small coal analytical facility near the cleaning plant was a pleasant surprise. Clean, neat, but not overburdened. They know nothing of the sample but routinely determine moisture, ash and heat content when requested. The equipment is reasonably new and seems well-cared for.

Most of the coal being mined (85%) is for domestic heating, with the remainder (15%) used for power generation. The 1994 production from all of the mining operations is expected to be 140,000 tonnes, a sharp drop from annual production in the past. A large variety of reasons seem to be responsible for the decline in production, ranging from worn-out equipment, fuel shortages, loss of markets [especially for the fine portion of the production], to lack of payment for coal previously produced, and others.

e. Kavak Coal Region

1. Kara Kiche Area

Kara Kiche is an open-cut mine located northeast of the town of Min Kush, but can only be reached by traveling 29 km south from the small town of Chaek, which is about 150 km southwest of Balykchy, the city at the west end of Issyk Kul. Here, two coal beds are present in the Lower Jurassic Tura Kavak Formation. This unit strikes west and dips about 45 degrees to the south as the northern limb of a west-trending syncline. The upper bed, called the compound bed, ranges from 1 to 10 m thick and is not mined. The lower bed, called the basic bed, is reported to average about 50 m thick. The coal is reported to be brown coal, equivalent to subbituminous coal. Mining is by excavator (backhoe) and truck, with overburden removed by shovel. The coal is reported to be transported by private trucks to Balykchy, Naryn, and to nearby communities. Personnel at the mine cite FOB prices as $4 per tonne for fines (less than 3-5 mm) and $8 to $9 per tonne for lump. There appears to be little demand for the fines. Production from this mine will probably reach only 50,000 tonnes this year, a significant decline from past years. Although small-scale mining apparently began about 1940 and recent exploration activities have ceased, this mine is still officially considered under development.

Two shovels, about 5 cubic meter capacity, were removing overburden. Two 45 cubic meter trucks for hauling overburden were present and two excavators, perhaps only one operable, were also present. About eight meters of coal were exposed in the operating pit and trucks were being loaded with coarse coal by the excavator. Two small pumps were attempting with indifferent success to keep water out of the area where overburden was being removed.

We never received a definitive answer as to why production had decreased. At a later time we were told by other parties that overburden removal was the problem and that perhaps the large trucks for overburden haulage were not operating as needed. We have had no chance to confirm this report. We asked and were told that the sale prices cited for the coal only covered direct mining costs and did not include capital recovery for maintenance and repair of equipment etc.

2. Agulak Area

The Agulak mine is an opencast operation located about 15 km southwest of Min Kush. The coal is in the Lower Jurassic Tura Kavak Formation, which here strikes west and dips about 30 degrees to the north as the southern limb of a west-trending syncline. Eight coal beds, in ascending numerical order, are present in the unit but only two of these have been mined, and only one of these, number 6, is currently being mined. This bed is reported to range from 10 to 40 m thick, and to consist of brown coal (subbituminous). Mining is by truck and shovel, and the coal is reported to be transported by private trucks to Balykchy, Naryn, and to local communities. Personnel at the mine cite FOB prices as about $11 per tonne for fines and about $12 per tonne for lump. 1994 production will probably not exceed 50,000 tonnes, a considerable drop from years past. Mining at this site began about 1959 and exploration has apparently ceased.

The known south limb of the syncline has an east-west extent of about seven kilometers with the present Agulak mine area occupying about 2.4 km at the eastern end. About 3.6 km underlies villages, farms, etc., and is considered unavailable for mining. An "old" mining area is present at the western end of the known coal area and an unexplored coal area is present north of the old area. There appear to be no plans for exploration because the measured (B1) and indicated (C1) reserves in the Agulak mine area are about 46 million tonnes and the inferred reserves (C2) are about 18 million. The measured and indicated reserves are at depths of less than 240m.

f. Issyk Kul Coal Region

1. Dzhergalan Area

Members of the team visited the black coal (bituminous) coal mine at Dzhergalan in eastern Kyrgyzstan. They were accompanied by Dokturbi Asanbaevech Marshirov of the Department of Fuel Industry, Ministry of Industry and Trade, Kyrgyz Republic. Marshirov is from the region, has worked in this mine and has many relatives in the area.

The mine is producing 100,000 tonnes per year from Jurassic strata overlain by Paleogene and underlain by Carboniferous. The coal is very steeply dipping, sometimes vertical, but generally is overturned and dips 65-75 degrees to the south. The strike is N 65 E. There are either three beds, two beds, or one bed and they speak of them splitting and coming together. In the area sampled, they are mining two beds, the number 5 and number 4. Number 5 is 7.4 meters thick and number 4 is 3 meters thick, with a 15m interval between them. However, at the next level lower in the mine, from which the stoped coal is now hauled, the two beds appear to have merged into one. We were able to obtain reasonably representative samples by hand picking horizontally across the beds. The sample of number 5 is essentially complete and that of number 4 is missing only the stratigraphically uppermost 20-30cm. Note: the miners refer to the geometrically upper surface as the roof of the bed, although it is actually the base of the coal bed as it was deposited. We sampled at the 2240m level, and they now consider the 2200m level as the deepest that they can go without encountering problems supporting the coal. The overburden increases rapidly at the lower levels because the coal dips beneath the mountain to the south. They now do the stoping under unsupported coal.

The coal is mined by drilling and shooting the coal in stopes, with each stope level being approximately 18-20 meters apart (vertically). The coal is gravity or hand loaded onto conveyors imbedded in the floor, dropped into chutes and then into mine cars, and hauled out of the mine on the cars. There is currently only one haulage entry. The coal is prepared by hand picking and is then screened by size. Two women do the picking and maintain the cleaning/sorting equipment on each shift. Coal is mined on four shifts of 6 hours each. The 100,000 tonnes are produced by a total work force of approximately 470 people.

The team members had the opportunity of spending quite a bit of time talking to the Mine "Director", Akachaev. He is worried that the mine may not stay in operation and that the community of 2000 plus could lose their only source of support. He said that, with input of some capital, the mine could produce 300,000 tonnes per year of high quality coal, and that the coal was desired by the users. There is a problem in that those who want the coal do not always have means of paying for it. He is currently in a bartering mode with some, or much, of the output, including, apparently, delivery to the city heating plant in Kara-Kol in exchange for electricity (which is distributed by the heating plant, though not produced there). The miners have not been paid for the past few months ( we do not know precisely for how long) although there has been a distribution of flour and sugar.

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