Kazakhmys Corporation LLC has invested 306.9 million tenge in upgrading the ventilation equipment at the Zhomart mine. The upgrade is aimed at improving the reliability of the underground ventilation system and ensuring safe working conditions.
Nine units of equipment were purchased as part of the project: three Korfmann ventilation units and six VME series mine fans, including four VME-12A and two VME-8. Three more fans are planned for delivery to the mine until the end of 2026.
The equipment delivery is being carried out at the initiative of the employer and is part of the planned technical upgrade of the mine’s ventilation infrastructure. The ventilation system supplies and distributes air in underground mine workings and is a key element of industrial safety during underground operations. The equipment upgrade will improve the reliability of ventilation in individual sections and maintain the required air quality.
The VME-12A and VME-8 fans are designed for local ventilation of individual sections and dead-end workings. The equipment is explosion-proof for mine applications. Korfmann ventilation units are designed to move significant volumes of air and ensure effective ventilation of mine workings.
The ventilation infrastructure upgrade complements other measures Kazakhmys is taking to enhance industrial safety at the Zhomart mine. Specifically, stationary methane relay gas detectors are being installed on self-propelled underground equipment: 56 devices have already been installed, and another six are in the process of being installed. Upon completion of the work, 62 units of equipment will be equipped with an automatic methane monitoring system. Additionally, 130 portable gas analyzers are used at the mine, and data from the stationary sensors is transmitted to a single control center. This work is being implemented as part of a comprehensive industrial safety improvement program, which includes 45 measures. The total funding for the program is 2.7 billion tenge.
Thus, the ventilation system modernization is part of a consistent upgrade of the mine’s production infrastructure and a set of measures aimed at improving industrial safety.
The work is being carried out as part of Kazakhmys’s Industrial Safety Transformation Strategy for 2026-2028. The company has declared 2026 the Year of Industrial Safety. (MetalPortal)