Twenty years on from the miners strike, does coal production in the UK have a future?
An increasingly rare sight in the UK The private company which runs most of what’s left of the British coal industry has reported an improved financial performance. UK Coal nearly broke even in 2003, with a loss of just over 1m. That followed a loss of 83m the previous year. But the industry is a shadow of what it was before the miners’ strike in 1984. Then there were 180,000 miners working at 170 pits. Now there are just 12 working pits and about 6,000 employees. With the closure of the Selby complex, there will be only nine working pits left. Signs of hope The mood at UK Coal, however, is more positive that in recent years. The international market price for coal has doubled in 12 months. (Emission targets) could be very serious – we are talking roughly half the business being wiped out by this regulation Nigel Yaxley, Confederation of UK Coal Producers After struggling for some time, the company can compete with imported coal. Costs have come down and the mines are more efficient. P
