Prairie Mining Ltd on Wednesday said it development plan for the Jan Karski deposit has been approved by the Lublin Regional Mining Authority in eastern Poland, paving the way for an application to secure a mining concession to be submitted.
The coal-focused developer said the plan received “exceptionally strong support from regional authorities and local communities” at the 2017 Jan Karski Mine Development Conference recently held in Lublin.
“The conference received wide coverage in both local and national media, including major newspapers and television, and was attended by senior Polish and Australian officials,” said the miner.
Attendees include the Australian Ambassador to Poland Paul Wojeciechowski, the Senior Trade Commissioner & Commercial Consellor of Austrade, Vice Marshal of Lublin province Krzysztof Grabczuk, Director of the Lubelskie Province Governor’s Office Tomasz Sonntag, Vice Governor of Chelm Shire Tomasz Szczepaniak, Vice Governor of Swidnik Shire Waldemar Białowąs and the Representative of the Polish Investment & Trade Agency Łukasz Chrabanski.
Citing the Australian ambassador, Prairie said it has “strong support” from the Australian government, citing Wojeciechowski as saying: “I am immensely pleased to see at this Conference the continuous support of local communities and regional authorities for Prairie’s Jan Karski project. As I hear, Prairie would be ready to commence the construction phase as soon as the mining concession is granted. The success of this investment will be proof for other foreign investors that projects of such scale are feasible in Poland.”
“It also serves as a perfect example of the kind of high-quality foreign investment Deputy Prime Minister Morawiecki called for in his economic development plan for Poland. I am looking forward to Jan Karski being built, providing thousands of new jobs in the region and contributing to social and economic development of the Lublin Voivodeship. This project will continue to enjoy strong support of the Australian government, as it is one of the most important Australian investments in Poland,” the ambassador continued.
Regional politicians also confirmed their support for Jan Karski, which will be located in Siedliszcze municipality in the Chelm Shire, and its potential to create a large number of jobs and bring significant economic benefits to the regional and national economy.
Prairie is expecting environmental consent and an approved spatial development plan during the second half of 2017. A granted mining concession will be valid for up to 50 years.
Prairie has now initiated works aimed at obtaining power grid connection for Jan Karski having obtained the appropriate network connection conditions from one of Poland’s major state-owned power utility firms called PGE Group.
Under the agreement, PGE Group has confirmed the conditions of connection to provide 45 megawatts bulk power supply required for full scale mine production. Power supply will be made available in two phases; firstly, 20 megawatts for the mine construction and shaft sinking phase, and then full mine power supply of 45 megawatts for steady state production.
To initiate the power line connections, Prairie has appointed SAG Elbud Gdansk SA, to design and complete all the permitting and engineering preparation for the connection and construction of a 10 kilometre long 110 kilovolt power line from a nearby power substation to the Jan Karski mine site.
Prairie Mining shares were up 1.5% on Thursday at 33.50 pence.
Source: lse