Materiały konferencyjne SEP 1993 - tom 1

Underground Exploitation Schcx)l '93 In contrast to this there was no investor to take over the MIBRAG for a long time. To change this situation ihe THA 1. empioyed McKin.scy to investigate the advantages of the middle-german coal; 2. empioyed a group of experts to investigate the conseąuences of an early end of lignite mining in the area south of Leipzig (the main working area of MIBRAG) and to find out the best way of redeveloping that area; 3. charged an intemational investment bank to search for an investor. Because the result of the McKinsey research was ąuite favourable, a group consisting of an american and a british company submitted an offer which consists of the take-over of 4 mines an the errection of a new power station. As this deal would be the first break-in of a foreign company into the german electric-power market the german electric-power suppliers found themselfes forced to submłd an offer too. In the next time Treuhand is going to start negotiations with the potential investor. Negotialions will conccrn the numbcr of employces, workers and mines to be taken over and the number of power stations to be errected. 4* Potash Mining ORIGINS. The world^s potash mining industy has its origin in an area close to the harz mountains in a little village called Stassfurt. On their search for table salt the miners found potash. After Justus Liebig in 1840 discovered the use of potassium for agriculture, production rised rapidly. In 1944, potash production in what became the G.D.R. amounted to about 900,000 tons K20. In 1989 production reaches its maximum of 3.5 million tons, comming from 10 mines. Most of the mines where older than 75 years. Only the Zielitz mine, brought into operation in 1973, is younger. DEYELOPEMENT SINCE REUNIFICATIOK Since 1989 production descended from 3.5 million to approximately 1.6 million tons K20 in 1991. Main resons for this are an excessive supply of potash on the intemational markets on the one hand, the drawback of agricultural production in the area of former G.D.R. and the rising of production cost and prices of the german potash on the other hand. To create feasible operation which can compete on the world market a major reconstruction program is currently on its way. The technical capacity will be cut back, which means that 6 out of 10 mines have been closed or will be closed in the near futurę. For redevelopement of the remaining mines more than 530 million DM will be 14 Tom II