Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Coal-exporting countries: The European market. [EEC, 1985 and forecasting]

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:6932366

In Western Europe steam coal demand surged from 28 million tons in 1973 to 89 million tons by 1985. The Energy Information Administration projects that this demand will rise further to 125 million tons by 1995. Although US coal has captured a major share of Europe's expanding steam coal market, US market share is not expected to increase in the future in the face of increasing competition. Factors that may influence which exporters will supply Europe's expanding steam coal trade include the price and quality of coal as well as the reliability of supply. Other major coal exporters to Western Europe include South Africa, Australia, and Poland. South Africa supplied 20% of the European market in 1985, and provided the largest share of steam coal imports. Columbia is expected to become a major steam coal supplier to Western Europe. The remaining coal exporters to Western Europe - West Germany, the USSR, the United Kingdom, and Canada - export limited quantities of coal. These countries are not expected to expand their market shares due to either uneconomical mining or shipping costs. This report analyzes the coal industries of the major competitors of the United States in the European market: South Africa, Poland, and Colombia. The structure of their coal industries is examined in terms of coal reserves, production, transportation, trade, and government policies that affect the coal industry. The United States has the capability to supply a major share of Europe's growth in steam coal trade. US coal, however, must compete with competitively-priced supplies of Australian, South African, and Colombian coal. If these countries are able to expand their shares of the European market, prospects for US steam coal will be limited. A shortfall in exports from any of the major coal suppliers, however, could offer an opportunity for the expansion of US coal exports.

Research Organization:
USDOE Energy Information Administration, Washington, DC. Office of Coal, Nuclear, Electric and Alternate Fuels
OSTI ID:
6932366
Report Number(s):
DOE/EIA-0502; ON: DE87004815
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English