Higher prices mean coal sector comes good in first four months of year

Over the first four months of the year, the coal mining industry earned zł.696.8 million, as opposed to a loss of zł.84.9 million for the same period last year, largely as a result of increased prices. Indeed, in 2003 one tonne of coal on average fetched a price of zł.140, while this year that figure has risen to zł.170. "This is the first time since October last year when the export of Polish coal has been profitable," Deputy Economy Minister Jacek Piechota said yesterday. "Before October 2003, we subsidized every tonne of exported coal by zł.40. Now we earn about zł.13," he continued. The coal industry's improved fortunes can be put down to increased demand from China and higher sea transport costs, which make importing cheaper coal from Australia or South Africa less attractive. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B3) D.W.