The authorities in the northern Chinese province of Shanxi have announced that, in the current year up to October 15, 99.5 percent of coal companies in the province signed formal merger and restructuring agreements.
In the period in question, the number of coal mines in the province decreased from 2,600 to 1,053, while all coal mines with annual outputs lower than 300,000 mt were shut down. The coal mines which have not been shut down are all to continue operations with modern mining machinery. Meanwhile, the coal mining industry in the province is now characterized by greater centralization: four large mining groups with annual outputs of above 100 million have been formed, while three mining groups with annual outputs of above 50 million mt have been set up.
In addition, safety in the coal industry in Shanxi Province is reported to have improved a little. In January-September this year, the worker death rate per 1 million mt of coal produced decreased to 0.2412, down 0.1247 year on year.
Also, in January-September this year, the coal output of the province was 522.29 million mt, up 90.94 million mt or 21.08 percent.