The UK’s largest coal producer plans to close Kellingley Colliery in Yorkshire and Thoresby Colliery in Nottinghamshire in the next 18 months. The two mines employ a total of 1,300 people.
UK Coal may seek a government bail-out to manage the closure gradually, if it fails to raise the £10 million to £20 million needed from the private sector. If it cannot get money in the next few weeks, the company said it would have to close the mines immediately.
The UK industry has struggled financially in recent years as a strong pound meant it lost out to cheaper imported coal. In particular, it has had to compete with a glut of coal from across the Atlantic, displaced by the US shale gas boom.
Despite the competition, last year UK Coal supplied enough coal to generate 4 per cent of the UK’s power.
If and when the two pits close, Hatfield colliery in South Yorkshire will become Britain’s last operating deep coal mine. UK Coal also has six working shallow pits.