Planning permission to mine coal until 2039 (this is often subsequently extended).
Tonnage:
42 million tonnes during the life of the extension + 30 million tonnes of "middling" coal to be dumped or put back into the coal mine.
Estimated CO2 and methane emissions:
100 million tonnes of CO2 and up to 1.17 million tonnes of methane, a more powerful greenhouse gas than CO2.
Coal operator (mining company):
Energybuild Ltd/Energybuild Mining Ltd.
Type:
Anthracite
Claimed uses:
2022: According to Energybuild Ltd, 60% of the coal goes to steelworks, 20% domestic heating (80% overall)
2023: Energybuild Ltd thinks this could drop to an overall 70% of the coal going to steelworks and domestic heating.
The planning application said power stations and steel works. With Aberthaw power station closed, Energybuild now talks of Pulverised injection for steelmaking, household heating, cement, and water filtration.
County Council Local Planning Authority:
Neath Port Talbot
Address:
Glynneath, Neath, SA11 5AJ
Physical size:
Because this is an underground mine, much of the excavation would be invisible but very real, as communities victim to flooding mine shafts have experienced. The underground tunnelling has permission to extend to 2.3km squared, taking you roughly half an hour to walk from one side of the tunnels to the other. And this doesn’t factor in the vertical shafts, sending offshoots that go beneath the River Dulais.