Talnakh
In 1960, the Talnakh copper and nickel ore deposits were discovered by the Norilsk geological prospecting expedition, and by 1963 the excavation of the skip and cage shafts, utilising techniques that were unique at the time (freezing and grout injection), was already underway at the Mayak mine. The mine was mainly developed by young people, and it is no coincidence that the construction site was declared a national priority for the ruling Communist Party's youth wing, the Komsomol.The builders were more than equal to the task, and by 1965, twenty two months ahead of schedule, three mineshafts were already fully constructed and equipped, and the main surface installations were in place.The fact that this stage of construction had been reached ahead of time allowed miners to commence the work of excavating the ore field significantly earlier than had been expected.The first mine to be established in the Talnakh area, the Mayak ("Lighthouse") mine, commenced operations on April 22, 1965, with the first excavatory explosion being conducted in honour of Lenin's birthday, which fell on that day. On March 29, 1966, on the eve of the 22nd Communist Party Congress, a diesel locomotive delivered the first consignment of six dump cars of industrial ore from the Mayak mine. In honour of the one hundredth anniversary of Lenin's birth, the mine was awarded the Order of the Glory of Labour in perpetuity.It was already clear that with the discovery of the Talnakh deposits and the working of the rich ores at the Mayak mine a new epoch in the development of the Norilsk Industrial Region had begun.The Mayak collective was victorious in socialist competition on several occasions, and was awarded other titles of honour among the various concerns operating as part of the Norilsk Mining and Metallurgical Combine and the Soviet Ministry of Non-ferrous Metals. On April 30, 1964, the Central Committee of the Communist Party and the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union issued a decree on "the acceleration of the development of the Talnakh deposits of copper and nickel ore and the further development of the Zavenyagin Norilsk Mining and Metallurgical Combine", which contained the following: "The Council of Ministers of the Russian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic (RSFSR) is charged with carrying out the task of conducting the construction of an underground mine to produce 5 million tonnes of ore a year, including in that figure 700,000 tonnes of rich ore a year, on the basis of figures given in the operational report on prospected reserves of rich and impregnated ores, which was presented by the Directorate of Geology of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR". In accordance with the specified task, in 1965 a project to extract and process rich and impregnated ore was established, and the Mayak 2 mine was renamed the Komsomolskii mine.The following is taken from the order issued by the Combine's director, V. I. Dolgikh on April 2, 1965: "The development of the Talnakh deposits is the most important task for the Norilsk Combine.From the moment they began their construction work, the young people of the town of Norilsk have been taking the most active role in achieving the task set by the Party and the government.The Norilsk Combine has been declared an all-union priority construction project for the Komsomol, and, as a rule, it is young people that are engaged in the most arduous tasks involved in the construction of the Combine. As far as the beginning of the construction of the second Talnakh mine was concerned, the first volunteers were members of the Komsomol.In response to the request from these, and from the young people of Norilsk, and to acknowledge the great importance of the initiative of the members of the Komsomol who have been engaged in the construction of the Talnakh complex, I hereby declare that the Mayak 2 mine be renamed the Komsomolskii mine." The efficient organisation of the work undertaken and the successful implementation of advanced techniques that were specified in the development plan enabled the construction of the mine to be completed a full sixteen and a half months ahead of schedule. On March 29, 1971, on the eve of the twenty fourth Communist Party Congress, the first consignment of ore was sent by train to Norilsk, and on that day the State Commission approved the development of the first stage of the Komsomolskii mine project. On that day a future giant in the sphere of non-ferrous metallurgy made its first steps forward.While the Mayak mine was engaged in the prospecting of deposits, the Komsomolski mine had become a test area and production laboratory engaged in the introduction of new technologies and equipment. The Komsomolski mine was the scene of many "firsts" in the industry.It was the first mine in Soviet / Russian history to erect large scale tower head frames of poured-in-place reinforced concrete by means of slipforming, as well as pioneering a new method of piling in the construction of its storage complex. As far as processing systems were concerned, there was nothing to compare with the work being carried out at the Komsomolskii mine, not only in the Soviet Union, but also abroad.At the beginning of the seventies, a high - capacity continuous sheet system for the vertical extraction of layers of solidified composites from otherwise exhausted expanses of the mine was implemented for the first time ever in the Soviet Union. The Engineering and Technical Department learned how to control geological pressure, as well as taking into consideration and analysing the stressed condition of aspects of the processing systems. Attention was also given to the effects of drilling and explosive excavation on exposing deposits, and new methods for simplifying roof support structures were developed.New diesel - driven automated equipment also first saw the light of day at the Komsomolski mine. In 1975, the Komsomolski mine achieved the output capacity that had been forecast in the original proposal. In 1976, specialist departments were introduced at the various production facilities.Drilling, dynamiting and storage sections came into existence, along with shaft sinking and cargo transport sections.This new specialisation made it possible to exploit automation to the maximum, to improve the quality of the work carried out, as well as providing for the better maintenance and repair of equipment.An underground repair department was established in 1976 for the servicing of diesel - driven equipment, such as boring and cargo transport machinery. Since January 1, 1998, the Mayak and Komsomolski mines, together with the newly constructed Skalisty mine have been amalgamated, with the three mines being treated as individual pits within the structure of one mine. In February 1, 2003, the Komsomolski mine took on its new guise as the Talnakh mining administration, comprising the Komsomolski, Mayak and Skalisty mines. The Talnakh mining administration is situated on the right bank of the Norilsk River, at the foot of the Talnakh hills, 25 km to the north of the city of Norilsk, with which it has both road and rail connections.The main consumers for the mine's products are the Talnakh and Norilsk enrichment plants, the Nadezhda smelting works and the Nickel works. The mine field on which the Komsomolski, Mayak and Skalisty mines are situated extends for 12 km, with a maximum width of 3.5 km. The extent of the mine that has been worked out amounts to over 450 km.Altogether, there is over 80 km of rail track.The mines' main ventilation systems pump through over 1,300 cubic metres of air a second, which is comparable to the flow of the river Norilsk. The Komsomolski mine continues to work and expand on the basis of the Talnakh field's reserves of sulphurous copper / nickel ore.At the edges of the mine's area of operations, the reserves of rich and cuprous ore of the Oktyabrski deposits (at the Zapad pit) and the Talnakh deposits (at the Vostok pit) are currently being worked out. The Mayak mine has been working the Talnakh deposits since 1966.The guiding principle when engaging in the treatment of ores has been the order of processing according to type.In the first place, reserves of rich ores were worked out until they had been exhausted, at which point cuprous ores andimpregnated ores with a higher metal content were brought on line.In 1981, reserves of rich ores in the mine field had basically been fully worked out, and, in 1982 (protocol No. 117 of 16.12.82) the extraction of all types of ore commenced. The Skalisty mine became part of the Komsomolski mine in 1998 as an ongoing construction project.Production complexes 1 and 2 should come on line in 2003, and will be engaged in processing rich ores from the northern part of the Talnakh ore field. Today, the Talnakh mine is an enterprise that enjoys modern working conditions and leisure facilities that come up to the highest standards.The mine now has its own museum, educational facilities, a sports complex with inbuilt gym, its own leisure resort and so on. With the increase in the volume of ore mined, the workforce is being downsized, while productivity increases.In 1997, before the amalgamation of the three independent mines of Komsomolskii, Mayak and Skalisty, the total volume mined stood at 654,500 m3. In 1998, after the amalgamation of the three mines, it came to 723,500 m3. Between 1979 and the present day, the number of workers has been downsized from 2,602 to 2,380.The number of managers, specialists and support staff has been reduced from 441 to 268 in the same period.The control coefficient has increased from 5.3 to 7.6, and labour productivity has grown from 251.5 m3 per person in 1997 to 440.2 m3 per person, that is by 177 per cent. |
