FuyunEditor | Commentary on HistoryAs a fossil fuel, coal has a wide range of uses and is indispensable in our life. The common roles of coal include power generation, Steam locomotive, metallurgy, industrial boiler and daily life

Fuyun

Editor | Commentary on History

As a fossil fuel, coal has a wide range of uses and is indispensable in our life. The common roles of coal include power generation, Steam locomotive, metallurgy, industrial boiler and daily life.

Since ancient times, coal has played an important role in people's lives, economic development, and even social development. China is currently the earliest country in the world to use coal.

In the Xinle ancient culture of Liaoning and the ruins of Gongyi in Henan, we have discovered many coal based industrial products, as well as traces of using coal to smelt iron.

Until now, coal still plays an important role in people's lives and industry. Currently, more than one-third of China's coal is used for power generation, providing resources for China's electricity consumption.

The importance of coal is self-evident, but as a natural resource, it is not found in all places. Once a large-scale coal field is discovered, it is undoubtedly a great blessing for this country and will be included in strategic resources, which will also make others envious.

As a country with the largest land area, China has rich natural resources that the world envies. The "super coal field" discovered in China last century covers an area close to that of Taiwan Province Province.

The discovery of this coal field has caused a sensation around the world, and the world is envious. So where is this "super coal field"? How about China's coal resources? What about the coal resources of other countries? Let's continue to look further.

China's "super coalfields" are envied by the world

The term 'vast land and abundant resources' belongs to China. In terms of mineral resources, China has 157 types of mineral resources due to its diverse geological conditions, which are quite rare in the world.

As a developing country, China's demand for coal as a resource is also increasing with the development of society. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, China has been continuously strengthening coal mining.

In these years of exploration and mining, many large-scale coal fields have also been discovered. What are they? Where is the largest one?

According to a survey, the main coal bearing areas in China are Northeast, Northwest, North China, Southwest, and South China. These areas have a considerable number of coal mines, which not only meet the needs of rapid social development, but also provide convenience for people's daily lives.

When it comes to China's coal fields, we have to first talk about the "super coal fields" discovered in the last century. This "super coal field" covers an area of about 31200 square kilometers, almost the size of Taiwan Province.

The proven reserves are about 230 billion tons, and the coal produced by Shendong Coalfield is a rare high-quality thermal coal in the world, with excellent mining conditions. The discovery of such a super large coalfield has made the world envious.

In fact, although the title of "super coalfield", Shendong Coalfield, has only emerged in recent years, it is not a newly discovered coalfield. In 1984, China had already discovered Shendong Coalfield.

However, at that time, China's technology and ability in both surveying and mining coal mines were relatively backward. At that time, only a few small coal fields on the surface were discovered, and these coal fields were relatively scattered. At that time, China's mining scale was also relatively small, so it had never had such a large reputation.

However, after the discovery of coal mines, China attached great importance to them. In 1985, China Shenhua Energy Co., Ltd. was responsible for the development of coal and mining areas.

And Shenhua Company did not disappoint the expectations of the motherland and the people, let alone this huge coal storage field. Over the years, it has been continuously surveying and developing technology, gradually making this "super coal field" appear in front of people around the world.

The Shendong Coalfield has also become the first coal mining area in China to mine over 100 million coal mines, which shocked the world. According to statistics, the coal mined by the "super coalfield" of Shendong Coalfield alone has been sufficient for China's coal needs for over 200 years.

This kind of coal reserves and production has also breathed a sigh of relief for our country, after all, our country's demand for coal also ranks first in the world. Previously, a large part of it relied on imports, and the comprehensive exploration of Shendong Coalfield has largely solved our country's coal demand.

Moreover, it should be noted that China is not only the "super coalfield" of Shendong Coalfield, but also has many coal mines in Shanxi, Northeast China, and other regions, which can mine countless high-quality coal mines every year.

Shanxi is one of the most historic and well known coal mine producing areas in China. There are more than 1000 coal mines in Shanxi, such as Datong Coal Field, Hedong Coal Field, Xishan Coal Field, etc. These places produce Anthracite, semi Anthracite, lean coal, coking coal, etc. Although the current production has decreased, the mining of these years also has an important position in China's coal history.

Northeast coal mines are also very famous. As the earliest industrial base in China, Northeast China is rich in various resources, especially coal in Northeast China, which has laid a good foundation for modern industry in China. The coal mines in Northeast China are mainly concentrated in Heilongjiang, including Jixi mining area and Shuangyashan mining area. The Northeast mining area has a long history and is also very famous.

No wonder other countries envy such abundant mineral resources and large super coal mines. So what is the distribution of coal worldwide? Let's take a look together.

The distribution of coal fields in various countries around the world

Coal, natural gas, and oil are one of the three major energy sources in the world today. The proportion of coal is between natural gas and oil. With the development of society, although the status of coal has declined, it still occupies an important position.

From the perspective of global coal resource distribution, the majority of coal resources are concentrated in the Northern Hemisphere, which accounts for about 70% of global coal resources. The uneven distribution of coal resources has led to different demand for coal in various countries around the world, and many countries rely on imports.

From the perspective of coal production, the global coal production has also been increasing in recent years, especially in China, which ranks first in the world in terms of annual production.

As one of the three major energy sources, coal is highly valued all over the world. According to the reserves of coal mines, the first coal mine in the world is Rochester Coal Mine in the United States.

The coal mine is located in the Fenhe Basin, Wyoming, with a mining capacity of more than 2.3 billion tons. Like China's "Shendong Coalfield", Rochester produces mainly clean coal, which not only produces high heat but also produces few harmful substances.

The second and third ranked coal mines are all located in Inner Mongolia, namely the Halwusu and Heidaigou coal mines.

The reserves and production of these two coal mines are both very high, with over 1.7 billion tons of reserves in the Halwusu coal mine alone. Moreover, due to their proximity to the Heidaigou coal mine, China has implemented expansion and transformation plans, and the two coal mines will continue to increase China's coal production.

Although China was the earliest country in the world to discover coal, it has been used for thousands of years. In addition to daily use, it also smelts copper and even uses coal to make handicrafts. However, it has not become an industrial fuel like in other countries during the Industrial Revolution.

Nowadays, with the vigorous development of the coal mining industry by the country, the excavation and use of coal in China have risen to the forefront of the world, and the surveying and mining technology of coal fields has also been continuously improved, and a continuous stream of coal fields have also been discovered.

Overall, China's coal industry has been developing steadily, healthily, and orderly, and the future is even more promising.

Where is the world-renowned Shendong Coalfield?

The vast area of Shendong Coalfield makes the world envious, so where is Shendong Coalfield?

At the border of Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, and Shaanxi, this area has been rich in minerals since ancient times, especially Inner Mongolia, where the two top ten coal mines are located.

The Shendong Coal Mine is located at the border of Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, and Shanxi. Currently, the surveyed coal reserves in the Shendong Coalfield have exceeded 230 billion tons. The Shendong Coalfield is the largest discovered coalfield in China to date, even surpassing the Halwusu and Heidaigou coal mines, and is also a world-class mega coalfield.

The two largest coal mines in this "super coalfield" Shendong Coalfield are Shenfu and Dongsheng Coalfield. Where are these two coal mines?

Shenfu Coal Field is located in Shenmu, northern Shaanxi. Shenmu is only a County-level city, but Shenmu covers a large area of nearly 7600 square kilometers. Shenmu is also the largest county in Shaanxi.

Shenmu is geologically the address of the basin syncline, and natural minable coal seams have been formed through the natural process. The surface coverage is only a few meters, and even a large part is exposed on the surface. It is suitable to use only Surface mine mining.

Fugu County, in the north of Shendong City, is also the main distribution area of coal. Fugu County and Shenmu are located at the junction of the Inner Mongolian Plateau and Loess Plateau at a higher altitude, although the terrain and geological conditions in the county are poor.

But Fugu County is very rich in resources, with more than 20 kinds of mineral resources, especially coal resources. At present, the proven coal reserves are up to 20 billion tons, and it is world-class high-quality coal..

In addition, Hengshan District, Jingbian County and other areas in Yulin City are also distributed in a small amount. The whole Shenfu coalfield has proven coal reserves of 151.6 billion tons. Shenfu coalfield is also the most abundant coal field in China.

Dongsheng Coalfield is located in the southern part of Ordos, Inner Mongolia, with a vast territory and a total area of approximately 87000 square kilometers. The Dongsheng Coalfield is located in the central southern region of Ordos.

The area containing coal is about 12800 square kilometers, and the proven coal reserves are 72.752 billion tons. The coal quality in the Dongsheng coal area is very good, and even raw coal can reach the standard of clean coal without washing.

You should know where there are coal mines, where you will get rich. So the emergence of the "super coalfield" in Shendong Coal Mine has brought about development in the local area, as is the case in Ordos.

Although Ordos has a small population of only 2.2 million, its local economy is very impressive. In 2022, Ordos' per capita GDP reached as high as 256000 yuan, surpassing Shanghai and Beijing, Shanghai, and even three times the national average, with a per capita disposable income of 48300 yuan

Ordos is located in Inner Mongolia, not in coastal cities but so prosperous because of its abundant resources.

According to scientific statistics, Ordos has over 50 types of mineral reserves, with proven coal reserves reaching 167.6 billion tons, accounting for one sixth of the country's total reserves. The proven natural gas reserves exceed 800 billion cubic meters, accounting for one-third of the country's total reserves.

The abundant resources in Ordos have created rich resource conditions for China, which is why Ordos is so rich. The green and advanced mining methods not only enable the city to continue to prosper, but also provide a continuous source of resources for the entire country.

Not only Ordos, but many parts of China have been developed due to their abundant resources. People live and work in peace and contentment, which is a gift from nature and a result of labor and wisdom exchanged by the country and people.

The Important Value of Shendong Coalfield

The discovery of Shendong Coalfield, a "super coalfield" that will be envied by the world, naturally has a reason. In addition to its huge coal reserves, some parts of Shendong Coalfield are also made of high-quality coal. In addition to being envied by the world, the discovery of Shendong Coalfield also has significant value for China.

China, as a country with a large area and population in the world, also has a high demand for coal. Although the coal reserves were sufficient in the past to meet China's demand for coal, the discovery of Shendong Coalfield has given China a huge guarantee in terms of coal.

How much coal does China need each year? Roughly estimated, China's annual coal consumption is over 3 billion tons. If calculated in this way, the coal from Shendong Coalfield alone can supply China's coal consumption for 223 years.

In terms of the difficulty of Coal mining, Shendong Coalfield is a unique high-quality coalfield, with a depth of about 22 meters and many coal seams. The geological structure of Shendong Coalfield is relatively stable, and the distribution of coal on the surface is also very flat, which makes mining easier.

Moreover, there is also great pressure on environmental protection nowadays, especially the consumption of coal. Therefore, in order to better protect the environment, the mining method and quality of coal are even more important.

The coal quality of Shendong Coalfield has been roughly introduced earlier and is among the top in the world, particularly in line with the rapid development of technology today.

Especially in Shendong Coalfield, the thermal coal can reach the highest standard of thermal coal in China, with high power generation rate and particularly low release of harmful substances during combustion, which is in line with current environmental protection concepts.

However, according to the latest data statistics, although China's coal production in 2022 has approached 4.6 billion tons, it still needs to import coal. Therefore, in the current tense international situation, in order to prevent energy shortages due to unstable international situations, China's own coal production needs to be further strengthened.

From this perspective, the discovery of the Shendong coalfield not only played an important role in the history of coal mining in China, but also played a crucial role in China's future development!

In today's world, in addition to the environmental crisis and the Energy crisis, many countries have gone from envy and salivation to envy of China's resources, and are very reluctant to take possession of them. Many countries also rely on importing various resources from China.

In this situation, China not only needs to develop steadily, but also needs to protect its resources!

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