[Politics] The long game

[Cheshire Cat]

But....... but........ but we took back control........ didn't we?

Were loose.

 

[Cheshire Cat]

The new coal mine will provide coking coal to our steel industry. Steel is a strategic industry which we cannot do without. It makes sense to dig our own coal for it than to import it from Russia, Argentina, Australia etc.

Except it won't.

First UK coal mine in decades approved despite climate concerns

Climate experts and Tory MPs argued the Cumbria mine would scupper UK efforts to lower emissions.

www.bbc.co.uk

"West Cumbria Mining says the coking coal it produces will be used for steelmaking in the UK and Europe.
The local council had granted permission to dig for coking coal until 2049, with the mine expected to create about 500 jobs.
But the two companies that still make steel using coal in the UK - British Steel and Tata - say they plan to move to lower carbon production methods.
Steel industry expert Chris McDonald estimates that, at best, they will use less than 10% of the output of the mine and, by the mid-2030s, none at all.
That means the new mine will export virtually all the coal it produces."

 

[beorhthelm]

“The UK steel industry has been clear that the coal from the West Cumbria mine has limited potential due to its high sulphur levels,” said Chris McDonald, chief executive of the Materials Processing Institute, which serves as the UK’s national centre for steel research.
“This, combined with the industry’s drive to decarbonise, means that by the time the mine opens, only one of the UK’s current four blast furnaces is likely to be able to use this coal, meaning that more than 90% of production will be exported."

its very simple, if the coke produced is not good enough for steel, it will not be viable to mine and they'll stop. they wont dig it up anyway and attempt to compete with cheaper coal from Russia, Australia, South Africa etc, because they'd go bust. so let them mine. the net amount used will depend on how much steel is produced, not how much they dig out. coke is an industrial ingredient, not a fossil fuel, there's only experiemental replacements, if successful there isnt the energy capacity available to produce enough hydrogen. if you want steel we need coke for decades.

 

[GT49er]

But....... but........ but we took back control........ didn't we?

Were loose.

No - we've flogged off our assets and can't get 'em back. That's the problem.