Active intake ventilation, personnel and materials shaft of Zakłady Górnicze Lubin, the oldest copper mine in the Polish Legnica-Głogów Copper District.
Shaft L-I is an intake ventilation, personnel and materials shaft of Zakłady Górnicze Lubin, the oldest copper ore mine in the Polish Legnica-Głogów Copper District (LGOM) and an operating division of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. Construction of ZG Lubin began on 1 January 1960 following the discovery of copper ore near Lubin in 1957. L-I was one of the two principal main shafts of the mine alongside L-II. During sinking in 1962 both main shafts suffered a dangerous quicksand and water ingress that threatened the entire project.
The mine was officially opened on 19 July 1968. L-I serves multiple functions: intake ventilation, materials haulage, and personnel transport. It continues as an active component of a mine producing approximately 7 to 8 million tonnes of polymetallic copper, silver and associated metal ore per year at depths of 450 to 1,000 metres.
Shaft L-I is one of the original main shafts of Zakłady Górnicze Lubin, the oldest copper ore mine in the Polish Legnica-Głogów Copper District. Construction of the mine began on 1 January 1960 by ministerial order of the Ministry of Heavy Industry, following the discovery of a major copper ore body by a team under Jan Wyżykowski near Sieroszowice on 23 March 1957.
The mine was established as Zakłady Górnicze "Lubin" in budowie — that is, as a mine under construction — from 1 January 1960. The first shaft to be sunk was L-III, with sinking of the main shafts L-I and L-II following as the programme developed. During shaft sinking in 1962 a dangerous quicksand and water ingress penetrated the main shafts, including L-I, threatening to flood and halt the entire construction programme. The event prompted serious discussion at government level about abandoning the investment. The crews overcame the ingress and work continued.
The mine was officially handed over for initial production on 19 July 1968, at 25 per cent of design production capacity. Its planned production capacity of 14,000 tonnes of ore per day was reached in April 1972. After an expansion completed in 1973, capacity grew to 7.6 million tonnes of ore per year. ZG Lubin is described as a polymetallic mine, with its ore containing copper, silver, and in smaller quantities nickel, cobalt and molybdenum. Silver content in the geological resources stands at approximately 50 grams per tonne of ore. Extraction operates at depths of 450 to 1,000 metres in the Lubin-Małomice ore field.
Shaft L-I functions as an intake ventilation shaft (szyb wdechowy), a materials shaft (szyb materiałowy) and a personnel shaft (szyb zjazdowy), making it one of the most operationally versatile shafts in the mine. The Wikipedia article for ZG Lubin records seven shafts at depths of 494 to 963 metres. L-I is among four intake ventilation shafts alongside L-II, L-VI and L-VII. The mine has one haulage shaft, with four shafts serving materials and personnel functions. A 2018 ABB modernisation contract for ZG Lubin's hoist equipment confirmed the mine as an active operation employing modern drive technology.
The mine continues to operate as the oldest division of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. and as the site of the first copper ore extraction in the Polish LGOM.