The discussion was also attended by a representative of the AGH University of Science and Technology and the Australian drilling company ADS supporting JSW in this regard. – Exchange of experience will enables us to implement this technology more efficiently in our mines – said Artur Dyczko, Vice-President of the JSW Management Board for Strategy and Development during the symposium - I would like these directional drillings to extract information on the quality parameters of the deposit which will be mined in two or three years.

Thanks to this technology, you can drill several-hundred-meter long boreholes from the pit level.

 – Directional drillings provide perfect input for exploration of the deposit as they reach long distances from the mining longwalls. They also make it possible to obtain cores used for laboratory tests and assessment of the deposit quality, which translates into mining operation planning in the company – says Jan Macuda PhD hab. from the Drilling, Petroleum and Gas Faculty at the Mining and Metallurgical Academy in Kraków.

So far, most works associated with exploration of deposits were performed from the surface. But today technology allows us to reach the most interesting areas. The surface research conducted so far has a number of limitations, especially when it comes to places difficult to access. Precise exploration of the rock mass supports cheaper and more efficient mining - Our testing has been determined by the geology. Before we used deposit exploration with boreholes, but these were traditional machines  – explains Robert Rożek from KGHM Polska Miedź. – Due to natural hazards we started to perform much more extensive drilling works and, after we have tested other methods, it looks like directional exploration is the most effective.

Similar works are already used for other purposes. – In Polska Grupa Górnicza you can say we are at a crawling stage  – says Edward Paździorko, Director of Polska Grupa Górnicza’s Investment Works Mining Unit. – For a year we have been using this technology in removal of methane in mines.

Nobody has doubts that such technological dialogue is necessary. – As far as directional drilling is concerned, we want to learn about the experiences of our colleagues from the industry – says Maciej Mazur from Lubelski Węgiel “Bogdanka”. – Today we use the conventional technique, but we are researching the market and checking whether we can apply certain solutions in Lubelski Węgiel.