An underground drift coal mine in the Neath Valley is gearing up to mine a further 40 million tonnes of coal, after its application for a mining license was approved.
Energybuild Mining Limited applied to the Coal Authority, the UK Government agency responsible for mines, for a full underground license for Aberpergwm Colliery, near Glynneath, Neath Port Talbot, back in September 2020, and the application has now been approved.
The mine, labelled by Energybuild Mining Limited as the "only source of high-grade anthracite in Western Europe," is now set to be extended so miners can excavate 40 million tonnes of anthracite, which is also known as hard coal, over the next 20 years - much to disapproval of the Welsh Government and local politicians.
The Welsh Government said it "does not support" the extraction of fossil fuels - but because Energybuild applied for a license before control over coal licenses in Wales was devolved to the Welsh Government, it is not able to step in and alter or reject the company's application.
Explaining that further coal mining is not something the Welsh Government can support, a spokesperson said: "We have been clear that we do not support the extraction of fossil fuels and are focused on the climate emergency.
"As the original licence was issued before powers in relation to coal licences were devolved, Welsh ministers are not able to intervene in the licensing process and appropriately apply Welsh policy."
The mine has had a chequered past, with work first taking place there around 1811 and continuing at a relatively small-scale until the 1860s when commercial work at the site began to pick up, with management soon opening further drift mines.
At its height in the 1930s, Aberpergwm employed more than 1,500 people and it kept this momentum going well into the 1970s, thanks to a huge £750,000 investment.
The National Coal Mine closed the colliery down in 1985 and it stood empty for 11 years, until local investors Anthracite Mining Ltd reopened the site.
The mine changed hands once again in 2011, when it was bought by US firm Walter Energy. From then until 20115 it predominantly provided coal to nearby Port Talbot Steelworks, owned by Tata Steel but it was forced to close in July 2015 after Walter Energy filed for bankruptcy, leading to 300 jobs lost locally.
It then re-opened in 2018, creating around 200 jobs, and coal production restarted at the site which has since become well-known in the coal industry as one of the only places to source "high-grade anthracite".
More recently, it was the centre of a battle between the Welsh Government and the UK Government over which authority was responsible for it, and which government could approve or deny applications to extend it.
But the UK Government told BBC news that it's the Coal Authority, not government ministers, that is ultimately responsible for licensing coal mines.
A spokesperson added: "We have taken massive steps to reduce our reliance on coal in recent years.
"Coal now accounts for less than 2 per cent of our energy supply and will be phased out entirely by 2024."
'The pollution caused by coal mining is utterly unacceptable'
Politicians across south Wales say they are devastated by the Coal Authority's decision to approve the mine and are calling for an end to coal mining across the UK.
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas told BBC Wales that it is "shameful" that Aberpergwm Colliery is set to mine a further 40 million tonnes of coal, and said fossil fuels must be left in the ground.
Ms Lucas' comments come after leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats Jane Dodds MS called for the expansion of the mine to receive an immediate veto from the UK Government.
In a statement issued prior to the application's approval, Ms Dodds said: "This project is totally unsuitable for a modern Wales that is seeking to do its part to stop climate change and build a future that is safe and sustainable for younger generations.
"Coal remains the dirtiest form of power on the planet and a new mine will result in new emissions being released at precisely the vital moment we are urgently trying to cut them.
"The pollution caused by coal mining and the burning of coal is utterly is unacceptable in the 21st century when a whole range of cleaner alternatives exist. Not only is coal a pollutant, but the process of mining also contributes heavily to water pollution and can lower water tables, damaging surrounding wildlife, farmlands and drinking water supplies."
She continued: "We also know that coal mining and the burning of coal is harmful not only to our planet but also to our health, with a clear link between pollution from the burning and mining of coal to lung cancer and a range of respiratory illnesses.
"It is simply absolute madness that the UK has just hosted the COP26 climate summit where it committed to the phasing out of coal, but has not stepped in to veto a new mine opening here in South Wales – you simply couldn’t make it up.
"What the Government should be doing, is investing in the jobs and skills of the future, not the past, including in high-skilled, high-tech green jobs that will provide long-term financial security.
"It is shameful that once again the Conservatives are riding roughshod over devolution in this case. The people of Wales now must unite in the campaign against this mine and show the Conservative Government that Wales deserves to be at the forefront of the fight against climate change and the green economy, not saddled with relics from the past.
"We must leave a better world for our young than we are currently set to, and a vital part of that is leaving fossil fuels in the ground."
What is Aberpergwm Mine?
Aberpergwm mine, also known as Aberpergwm colliery, is a coal mine near Glynneath, Neath Port Talbot operated by Energybuild Mining Ltd.
Workers excavate high-grade anthracite, which has a high carbon content and has wide domestic and industrial use around the world.
On its website, Energybuild Mining Ltd. said: "The mine produces high-grade anthracite, which has wide domestic and industrial use throughout the world due to its unique characteristics – high carbon content and calorific value for specialist uses.
"Aberpergwm Mine is the only producer of high-grade anthracite in Western Europe. The area’s geology contributes to the unique characteristics of the anthracite we produce – clean burn, low emission, low sulphur, high efficiency.
"The operation has vast in-situ resources of High-Grade Anthracite (HGA) – measured to international JORC 2012 standards. Unique characteristics, low impurities, ideal specific gravity for water filtration and other processes."
Locally, Aberpergwm mine provides much of the coal used at Port Talbot steel works and employs around 160 people.
Why are we still mining coal in Wales?
Aberpergwm Colliery was initially granted its license for coal mining before licensing powers were devolved to the Welsh Government.
With this in mind, the mine operators had applied to the Coal Authority (a UK Government authority) for its full license - not the Welsh Government.
Explaining that further coal mining is not something the Welsh Government can support, a spokesperson told the BBC: "We have been clear that we do not support the extraction of fossil fuels and are focused on the climate emergency.
"As the original licence was issued before powers in relation to coal licences were devolved, Welsh ministers are not able to intervene in the licensing process and appropriately apply Welsh policy."
Further, back in November 2021, deputy climate change minister Lee Waters spoke about the issue in the Senedd and accused the UK Government of hypocrisy over allowing the continued production of coal.
He said: "We've heard, at the COP in Glasgow, the Prime Minister saying that the UN needs to move away from coal, but that is the opposite of what the UK Government is doing. It's the current policy of the Government that the Coal Authority has a duty to support the continued extraction of fossil fuels. That is not what we want to do in Wales; we have a very clear policy of stopping using fossil fuels."
He added that the Welsh Government had requested the UK Government cancel the license for the extraction of the coal and said that if they failed to act by 2039 100 million tonnes of carbon dioxide would have been released because of the mine.
"Unless the UK Government agree to our request to cancel a licence granted in 1996 at Aberpergwm, some 40 million tonnes of coal will be extracted from this mine by 2039—100 million tonnes of carbon dioxide," he said.
"We want to keep this coal in the ground, but the UK Government, because of the powers in place, threaten to sit by and watch this coal being extracted in the face of our wishes.
"Now, the Coal Authority have told us they are minded to agree to our request—to deconditionalise this licence. We have written to the secretary of state for business, energy and industrial strategy to intervene."
