Changzhi city in Shanxi is intensifying its coal mine safety risk rectification campaign, with authorities signaling a potential acceleration in the resumption of production at suspended mines.

At a July 5 meeting of the city's coal mine safety risk rectification task force, Changzhi Party Secretary Ding Xiaoqiang called for a serious and thorough push to rectify issues, targeting root causes with precise measures and improving mechanisms to rebuild the industry's safety ecosystem.

The meeting outlined strict standards for rectification, re-inspection and acceptance procedures, demanding a thorough investigation of major illegal activities and risks. It also called for actively promoting the orderly resumption of production at qualified mines.

Authorities pledged to intensify accident investigations, enforce accountability, and crack down on power abuse, dereliction of duty and related corruption, while strengthening safety supervision and building a comprehensive monitoring platform to enhance grassroots oversight.

The meeting stressed the need to consolidate responsibilities across enterprises, workers, government departments, county-level jurisdictions and technical experts, and to advance green mining and intelligent transformation of the coal sector.

On May 22, a gas explosion at Tongzhou Group's Liushenyu coal mine in Qinyuan county, Changzhi, killed 82 people, left two missing and injured 128, marking China's deadliest coal mine accident in two decades.

Since the disaster, safety inspections in Changzhi have been sharply tightened. A June 7 meeting focused on key areas including mining, ventilation, gas and water hazard prevention, using enterprise self-checks, leadership inspections and expert reviews.

According to Sxcoal, the accident's impact on Changzhi's coal production persists, with mine restart progress remaining slow. As of July 3, 23 mines in Changzhi remained suspended, accounting for 43% of the total shutdowns across Shanxi province.

The latest meeting's emphasis on rectification, re-inspection and acceptance procedures, specifically targeting mine restarts, suggests the process for resuming production at suspended mines in Changzhi may accelerate in the future.