How to be competitive and how to provide more security for the employees?

Polish coal mines struggle with a whole range of problems which are due to resource depletion, the use of labour-intensive mining methods and a small level of using the latest technological solutions. The biggest challenge for the mining sector is the need to invest in technological innovations, caring for employee safety and minimising adverse environmental impact. Without it, further development and finding new markets will be even more difficult than it is today.

Safety, development and efficiency are the keywords that modern mines focus on. On the verge of the fourth industrial revolution they are quite familiar with innovations and modern technologies which allow them to create innovative solutions and build an environment-friendly mining sector. However, this development requires huge financial outlays and the need to develop innovative projects. Management boards of coal mines should look for some sources of savings in their enterprises, perhaps by verifying the amount of charges related to real property tax or accident insurance premium.

Our projects for the mining sector

Ayming’s experience – real property tax in the mining industry

Mining companies, due to the nature of their operations, often own vast areas of land. A significant part of them is usually used for mine workings. However, land located further from the coal mine premises is often not used for business purposes. In this case it is important to verify the source documents (extracts from the land and building register) and the actual state. Based on Ayming’s report, 48% of mining companies overpay the real property tax, while 24% have underpayments.

Another challenge is taxation of facilities being part of real property assets of mining companies. The method of taxation of structures located in mine workings can be deduced from the judgment of the Constitutional Tribunal dated 13 September 2011 (file No. P 33/09). According to the Tribunal, municipalities only have the right to collect taxes on some of the structures located in the coal mine premises, and not on the whole value of the workings.

Ayming’s experience – accident insurance premium for the mining industry

It is characteristic of the mining sector that many harmful factors coexist in the work environment. They most of all include noise, dust and high temperature. The presence of so many factors that affect the comfort and safety of work translates directly into the amount of the accident insurance premium. Companies that operate in the mining sector pay at least double the amount of what other companies – for instance those from the food industry – normally pay.

The main challenges related to correct determination of the accident premium amount involve specifying the work posts where admissible norms for harmful factors are exceeded and specifying the exact number of people working at those posts. In coal mines we deal with constant rotation of employees and change of work posts within e.g. mine workings. Throughout a year some of the galleries are closed while other are opened. Employees do not only work underground, but also on ground level in processing plants.