Sellers warn that the coal shortage this year could reach 2.8 million tons.
Although winter and the heating season are still far away, coal sellers are already warning that there may be a shortage of the raw material.
“In 2023, Polish mines will have extracted 48.4 million tons of coal. This is a decrease of 8.5% compared to the previous year. Production in Polish mines is falling faster than the demand for coarse coal as household fuel” – indicates the WNP website .pl, noting that a shortage of domestic coal could mean the need for imports, and consequently an increase in prices of this type of fuel.
The warehouses also have a small amount of coal. The head of a coal trading company in Upper Silesia estimates that there are about 600,000 items in its outlets. tons of raw materials. – Production in Polish mines is poor and there is insufficient buffer in the form of raw materials waiting for customers in warehouses – he says.
The website calculates that the market could have a shortage of approximately 2 million 800 thousand during the heating season. tons of Polish coal.
Imported coal
The domestic coal shortage will force imports. However, this one won’t be that easy. First, sellers have just started importing goods. In addition, imported coal is often soft, creating a lot of particulate matter that cannot be used in home furnaces. Supply disruptions are also possible due to geopolitical tensions. – There are many indications that there may be a shortage of raw coal, and therefore there may be pressure to increase prices – says the president of one of the coal trading companies in an interview with wwnp.pl.
Currently, depending on the point of sale and quality parameters, coal costs PLN 1.3 thousand. zloty. up to 2 thousand PLN per tonne.
As the Interia Biznes portal points out, another problem is the new quality standards for coal. A draft regulation on this has been drawn up by the Ministry of Climate and Environment. In April it submitted the project for consultation. The Ministry of Industry has submitted a number of comments on this project. “The entry into force on September 1, 2024 of the limitation of sulfur content to 1.2% will result in a shortage of coal on the east wall in the next heating season,” the Ministry of Industry warns.
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
