Putin instructed to think about the closure of mines with a high risk of accidents – RBK

“It is necessary to pursue a policy aimed at reducing the number of especially dangerous mines (deep mines with a high methane content). The mechanism for implementing such a policy is a ban on the issuance of new licenses for the use of subsoil for coal mining, ”he said.

Novak then clarified that in recent years the number of highly hazardous mines in Russia has decreased from 52 to 23. At the same time, the share of safer open-pit coal mines has increased. From the point of view of safety, mines are dangerous production facilities, the risks of accidents and other emergencies there are higher than at other industrial facilities, he explained.

The meeting with the participation of the President took place on December 2, 2021. The reason for it was the accident at the Listvyazhnaya mine in the Kemerovo region, which killed 51 people. At the meeting, the president demanded that the leaders and owners of enterprises be asked “toughly according to the law” for the life and health of the miners.

“It is unacceptable to abuse, to exploit the courage of people who go down into the mines. Their lives and health must be protected – this is the personal responsibility of everyone involved in organizing production. And the heads of enterprises, and representatives of supervisory authorities, and owners – those who, in the pursuit of profit or for some other reason, neglect the safety of people, put them at mortal risk. [С них] you have to ask according to the law, tough, ”he said.

Putin also promised that an audit would be carried out on how the instructions given 11 years ago after the accident at the Raspadskaya mine were carried out. “At that time it was about the systematic work to ensure safety at coal mining enterprises, and today we will analyze these issues,” he said.

In the case of the accident at the mine, nine people from among the managers and specialists were arrested, including the main owner of the mine, Chairman of the Board of Directors of JSC HC SDS-Ugol Mikhail Fedyaev.