Meeting with ministers offers fresh hope for steam coal supply
HERITAGE lines have fresh cause for optimism about future supplies of steam coal, following a meeting between their representatives and Government ministers, it has been claimed.
Kevin Hollinrake MP, whose Thirsk and Malton constituency covers the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, organised a House of Commons meeting between ministers and members of the Heritage Railway Association (HRA) to discuss the disappearance of UK coal supplies, as outlined last issue.
The March 4 meeting discussed the uneconomical reality of relying on imported coal if domestic production ends. The very high cost of imported coal would represent a huge financial burden for larger railways, and an unsustainable cost for smaller heritage lines, the meeting heard.
The HRA team met with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Under Secretary Rebecca Pow, whose constituency partially covers the West Somerset Railway, Minister for Sport, Tourism and Heritage Nigel Huddleston and Liz Saville Roberts, chairman of the All-party Parliamentary Group on Heritage Rail.
Affordability
Mr Hollinrake said:“i’m very concerned that heritage rail will not be able to guarantee an affordable supply of fuel in the years ahead, before environmentally-friendly alternatives have been developed.”
The MPS considered a proposal to provide support with the extra cost of importing coal, expected to be about £2-3 million, to establish the necessary supply lines to import the lumped coal needed for heritage steam.
Importing coal from Russia or Australia has an adverse environmental impact, the meeting heard. However, as an alternative, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is also considering planning permissions to extend the life of or to create new coal mines, allowing the UK to produce its own coal specifically for heritage railways, as well as for the UK’S steel and cement industries.
Carbon footprint
The day before the Mps’meeting, in an answer to a House of Commons question about coal, the Minister for Business, Energy and Clean Growth, Kwasi Kwarteng said:“from a coal and carbon emissions reduction point of view, it makes sense to have a locally based coal source rather than shipping it in a very costly way halfway around the world.”
HRA chief executive Steve Oates said: “I was very encouraged by the time afforded to us by both Rebecca Pow and Nigel Huddleston and their advisors, and by their desire to gain a clear understanding of the challenges, costs and technical issues heritage railways face in securing consistent and affordable supplies of suitable lump coal in the future.
“Having stressed the economic, PR and social value of heritage railways to the UK’S visitor economy and to numerous local rural economies, it is reassuring to know that the Government has no desire to see the end of heritage steam.
“Prompted by Rebecca Pow, we will now be seeking to meet with senior ministers Kwasi Kwarteng MP in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and Simon Clarke MP in Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and to seek similar meetings with relevant ministers in the Welsh Assembly.”