Seruci and its sister mines of Serbariu, Cortoghiana and Nuraxi Figus were the winning hand of the Societa Mineraria Carbonifera Sarcia which from 1933 was required by the Italian government to engage in a great production effort to free Italy from energy dependency on foreign countries. Seruci - situated in the municipality of Gonnesa - was the gateway to a large coal deposit which made Sardinia coal producing a region of European standing. The deposit was discovered thanks to the intuition of geologist Riccardo Jaffe: whereas for some Bo years explorations had been made to the east, from the first mine of Bacu Abis in the direction of Gonnesa and Iglesias, he decided to focus on the west side, towards the sea, a decision which brought to light the existence of hitherto unsuspected seams - and of better quality. The first concession for Seruci went to the Mineraria di Bacu Abis in 1923, but the true date of birth of this mine was 1938, when production began. Major investments were made to upgrade surface works and cut new tunnels, with unprecedented financial outlay. The investment paid off: approximately 100,000 tonnes were mined in 1938, rising to more than 190,00 the following year and almost 250,000 tonnes in 1942. However, after these years of exceptional production, in the late 1940s production started to decline, as the market value of Sulcis coal no longer covered production costs. Suggested remedies included using the coal at the mine head to produce chemical fertilizer for agriculture (the Giacomo Levi plan), and, later, building a coal-fired power plant (Giorgio Carta plan). This solution too, attempted with the mine's transfer to ENEL in 1964 failed and the mine was decommissioned in the 1970s. Today Seruci, like Nuraxi Figus, is held in concession by the Carbosulcis spa, a company owned by the Region of Sardinia.
