OREANDA-NEWS. The Government of the Trans-Baikal Territory resolved to qualify the Apsat coalfield development project as an investment project of territorial significance. According to the project the Apsat coalfield development involves establishing an open pit coal mine along with a coal preparation plant and infrastructure facilities. The total amount invested in the project is 31.3 bn rubles. During the project, in the Trans-Baikal Territory will be created significant employment opportunities.

The Apsat coalfield is located in the Kalar region of the Trans-Baikal Territory. The coalfield is 36 km to the north of Baykal-Amur Mainline Railway and the rural settlement of Chara, the region's administrative centre, and 50 km away from the nearest railway station of Novaya Chara (New Chara). The seams are steep: 65 to 70 deg. The minable thickness ranges from 1 to 21.6 m, with the average being 6.5 m. The project is under the charge of OOO Arctic Developments (a subsidiary of SUEK's). The pit is supplied with state-of-the-art machinery, its currently operating fleet already comprising Liebherr R954, Komatsu PC-1250, Doosan 4804, Hitachi EX-1900-6 excavators, Terex TA-400, Terex TR-100, Scania-420 dump trucks.

In the first year since its establishment (June 7, 2012 to June 7, 2013) the Apsat open-pit mine yielded 380,000 tonnes of coal, with 300,000 tonnes shipped to consumers. The volume of removed overburden has exceeded 3,000,000 m3.