TAIYUAN, Nov. 25 (Xinhuanet) -- A total of 1,838 coal mines in north China's Shanxi Province dad resumed production as of Monday after passing all necessary safety checks.

    The information was released by Yan Wensheng, vice-director of the Shanxi Provincial Coal Industry Bureau.

    All but the state-owned mines were closed after three consecutive gas blasts hit Shanxi's coal mines in August, killing dozens of miners, Yan said.

    Accounting for about one third of China's coal reserve, Shanxi has about 4,122 coal mines with an expected production of 400 million tons this year, according to figures updated this September.

    The reopened coal mines turn out about 70 percent of Shanxi's original coal output and their closure had resulted in rising coalprices in Shanxi Province since September. Enditem