OREANDA-NEWS  On 21 November was announced, that in January-October of 2008 the company sold its customers over 38 million tonnes of coal. It equals the same volume as it was sold to the power stations of Kazakhstan and Russia for the entire 2007, and it is higher by more than 27 percent of the level of the shipments for the similar period of last year. The entity is expressing an intention to set a new mining record by shipping over 46 million tonnes of coal through the year end.

The miners in Ekibastuz have not mined such volumes for the entire time of the Company’s activities yet. Even during 2006, which was considered to be the most successful year by its results, the customers were shipped only over 41 million tonnes of coal. 

In the 10 months of this year the power stations of Kazakhstan have consumed as much as 19.5 million tonnes of fuel, it is by a quarter more than the indicators of the previous year. The main growth of sales volumes happened owing to the shipments to GRES-1 and GRES-2 Ekibastuz power stations, JSC Astana Energy, JSC Almaty power stations, SevKazEnergo, LLP.

The power systems of the Russian Federation have increased the burning volumes of Bogatyr’s coal up to as much as 18.7 million tonnes. The consumption growth amounted to 30 percent versus the results of the similar period of 2007. Among the eight Russian power systems where nowadays Bogatyr’s coal is going to the main customer is Reftinskaya GRES. In the 10 months as much as 10 million 863 thousand tonnes of fuel have been shipped here, almost by one million tonnes more than for the entire 2007. Another major customer of Bogatyr’s coal is Troitskaya GRES. In January-October as much as 4 million 760 thousand tonnes of coal were delivered here, which is by 760 thousand tonnes less of the indicators of the previous year. The decline in consumption is connected with repair operations, which have been conducted at the station this year. One million 567 thousand tonnes of coal have been shipped to Serovskaya GRES for the 10 months, now this indicator is already exceeding by 340 thousand tonnes the results of the entire 2007.

March and October became the tensest months for the miners of the Company. In March over 4.5 million tonnes of coal were shipped, and in October as much as 4.3 million tonnes were shipped, which is higher by 29 percent of the sales level for the similar nine months of last year. In this case the actual average monthly coal shipment in October amounted to 30.8 trainloads, whereas for the same period of the previous year it did not exceed as much as 23.9 trainloads a day.

Bogatyr Access Komyr, LLP continues the implementation of the truck-and-conveyor technology, which basis is comprised of large haul trucks. Today their amount at the Company’s mines equals 21 units. Some other mining equipment is also being purchased. Recently in addition to the two already available 13-cubic meter excavators the entity has purchased another Liebherr hydraulic excavator; the volume of its bucket is 22 cubic meters. Nowadays this excavator has reached its design capacity and is shipping up to 34 thousand tonnes of coal a day.