This paper carries out the research on the continental mining of solid minerals and on the search of the alternative solutions of raw material’s procurement for leading industries. A value of conducting underwater operations for extraction of shelf zone’s ferromanganese nodules is specified. Schematic diagram of conducting mining operations is submitted. The construction of a mining complex for mining ferromanganese nodules of the Baltic Sea with the possibility of its separation partial enrichment on the seabed during the process of production is proposed. An analytical model of the system with bottom device and flexible traction element is given. The interaction between a flexible traction element and a bottom-mining unit allows to define the character of relative motion and also to describe the position of the flexible traction element as it moves in the aquatic environment. Specific conditions for steady operation of the complex for its inseparable moving on a seabed are presented.

The causes of failure of the bucket teeth of the excavator during excavations in rocks are analyzed in the article. It is shown that the most typical cause of failure of bucket teeth is wear of teeth. The wear with soft rocks (less than 1100 HV) which hardness is lower than the hardness of steel in the cold-work hardened state, a preliminary cold-work hardening can essentially (up to 10 times) increase the material wear resistance. The wear with rocks, having greater hardness with hardness of ~1250 HV, the cold-work hardening do not lead to increase of the Hadfield steel wear resistance.

The article describes the current situation in the global uranium concentrate market, explains the reasons for the formation of an excess amount of finished goods and the subsequent decreasein prices. The authorsevaluated the prospects of using market mechanisms to improve the financial results of Russian uranium mining enterprises. The location of the main mining centers in comparison with the centers of consumption of finished goods, pricing for the products of uranium mining companies, the dynamics of price changes over the past 20 years, the influence of non-market factors on the supply of finished products are analyzed.This study led to the conclusion that the expectation of changes in the market situation is not viable in a long term. The authors outlined the direction to improve the profitability of mining enterprises by introducing technological changes aimed at reducing the cost of the final product.