Chinese engineering firm CCMC performs well in Serbian project amid challenges in 2023

Photo shows the Cukaru Peki mine of Zijin in in Bor, Serbia. Chinese engineering company China Coal Mine Construction Group is the constructor of mining shafts of the mine. (Photo provided by CCMC) 

Chinese engineering company China Coal Mine Construction Group Co., Ltd. (CCMC) performed well as it broke a string of new records on monthly shaft sinking depth in its Serbian project in 2023, indicating the company's high quality and efficiency of its service and superb technology capability in the global engineering sector.  

The Cukaru Peki mine, a major new copper and gold mine located near the Serbian city of Bor, has been developed and operated by Chinese mining company Zijin since 2021. In 2022, CCMC won the bid for three thousand-meter shafts sinking project of the Cukaru Peki mine.

Among the three shafts, the two production shafts will reach a depth of 1343 meters, both with a diameter of 7 meters. The service shaft will reach 1,245 meters, with a diameter of 10 meters. Delving into a depth of over thousand meters for a shaft has long been a great engineering challenge. What makes it even more difficult is that the project is subject to significant geographical restrictions, such as fractured rock layers and unexpectedly high groundwater levels.

Sinking such deep mineshafts amid these challenges requires innovation, expertise, and caution. CCMC is committed to a responsible approach, seeking and executing the best possible solutions. The team also utilized advanced mechanical equipment, including large-scale drilling winches, central rotary rock grabbing machine and hydraulic umbrella drills, to reduce labor intensity and safety risks, and to ensure quality and efficiency, which is why the company can exceed 100-meter depth monthly for seven times.

CCMC has been dedicated to exploring overseas market in recent years. With its edge in core technologies, it has undertaken a series of projects in in countries such as Türkiye, India, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Zambia, Vietnam, and Laos.

When it comes to the overseas strategy, Sun Xuejun, Chairman of the company, said that the company will actively participate in energy infrastructure construction in Belt and Road partner countries.

(Edited by Li Shimeng, lishimeng@xinhua.org)