Poland

Poland’s hard coal resources are mainly in the Upper Silesian Basinm which lies in the southwest of the country, straddling the border with the Czech Republic – about 80 % of the basin is in Polish territory. Other hard-coal fields are located in the Lower Silesia and Lublin basins. There are a number of lignite deposits in central and western Poland, with four of the larger basins currently being exploited for production. The quality of the Upper Silesian hard coals is generally quite high, with relatively low levels of sulphur and ash content.

Although output of hard coal has declined during the past 20 years, and especially since 1997, Poland is still one of the world’s major coal producers, with a 2008 output of 84,3 million tonnes of hard coal and 59,7 million tonnes of lignite.

The decline in hard coal production reflects a deep restructuring of the industry, with the aim of eliminating the non-profitable mines by a reduction in excess production potential, substantially lower employment levels, elimination of government subsidies, etc.

Coal is one of Poland’s largest industries and employers, but inefficiencies have resulted in large annual losses, spurring the government to reform the sector. In 1998, the government introduced a five-year (1998-2002) Hard Coal Sector Reform Program which reduced employment from 248,000 to 140,000 by the end of 2002. In November 2003, the government introduced a second program to further consolidate and reform Poland’s coal sector – Program of Restructuring of the Hard Coal Mining Sector for 2003-2006. The program plans to close inefficient mines and reduce employment on a voluntary basis. For those who voluntarily leave, the government is providing other private sector employment for workers, and other support such as retraining, social hardship allowances, and early retirement pensions. The program also plans to privatize the country’s coal industry by 2006. In April 2004, the World Bank provided Poland with a loan of $160 million to support the country’s restructuring program.

In February 2003, the Polish government consolidated several failing coal firms to form Kompania Weglowa, which is now Europe’s largest coal company.

In June 2009 shares of Lubelski Węgiel Bogdanka were listed on the trading floor of the Warsaw Stock Exchange by the State Treasury.

Poland is the only world-class coal exporter in Europe. Its total exports in 2008 fell sharply to less than 8 million tonnes (compared to nearly 21 million tonnes in 2005), of which steam coal accounted for 80 % and coking coal 20 %. Germany, the Czech Republic and Austria were Poland’s largest export markets for coal.

About 63 % of inland consumption of hard coal goes to the production of electricity and bulk heat. Industrial uses account for 24 % and residential/commercial/agricultural uses 13 %. Almost all lignite production is consumed in CHP Plants (combined heat and power plant).

Source: Methane to Markets, World Energy Council 2010