Coal consumption in the United Kingdom 1970-2022

The coal industry in Britain spans back to Roman times, but over the past four decades the industry has been steadily declining. The consumption of inland coal has decreased significantly since 1970, when it amounted to 157 million metric tons. By 2022, this figure had fallen to just 7.6 million metric tons.

UK coal production

Historically the UK has been a leader in the production of coal, producing 147 million metric tons from deep and surface mining as recently as 1970. However, as with consumption, production has been in decline, and by 2019 amounted to approximately 2.1 million metric tons.

UK mine closures and economic impacts

The number of coal mines closing has been increasing for decades, with the number of deep mines falling from 33 in 2000 to just four in 2019. These closures have had a noticeable impact on employment figures. What was once a major industry, employing more than one million people in 1920, has seen employment numbers drop to just 1,000 over the course of a century.