Sandvik said the best performing bord and pillar section in South Africa during 2008 was Xstrata Coal’s Tavistock Colliery section 4 which produced 1.25 million tonnes of Run of Mine coal.

The original equipment manufacturer said the MB750s was used as the production machine, cutting single-pass 3.4m high and 6.6m wide in combination with two shuttle cars, with the second Bolter Miner section producing more than 1Mt at the mine for the year.

With the mine operating under the Fulco shift system on a 24-7 basis, Sandvik said mining stopped one shift per week for maintenance.

At Sasol’s Syferfontein colliery Sandvik said two of its Bolter Miners produced more than 1.2Mt each for the year, cutting 4.5m high and 6.6m wide passes.

Sandvik said the machines were used in combination with a continuous haulage system.

The Syferfontein mine operates on a two-shift system, five days a week, with the third shift scheduled for maintenance.

The Sandvik Bolter Miner MB750s was previously known as the Alpine Bolter Miner ABM 30.