The conference “Clean Energy, Restored Lands: The Path Forward for Coal Regions” examined how European coal and lignite regions can transition from fossil fuel production to sustainable economic development through research, innovation, site restoration, and regional regeneration. Organised in partnership with EURACOAL for the EU Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS) and the Coal Regions in Transition (CRiT) initiative of the European Commission, the event brought together policymakers, industry leaders, researchers, and regional stakeholders. It was hosted at the German Mining Museum and the Technische Hochschule Georg Agricola in Bochum under the patronage of the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia.

A full report is available here along with presentations and videos.

The Mayor of Bochum, Jörg Lukat, welcomed participants with a brief history of his city and how it was shaped by structural change. State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Action and Energy, Silke Krebs, delivered an opening keynote address in which she advised working together on shared plans that build on regional identities, while remaining open to change as events unfolded.

Other keynote speakers, including Martin Špolc, Director for Prosperity in the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation at the European Commission, and Marian Zmarzły, Undersecretary of State at the Polish Ministry of Energy, stressed that the transformation of the coal regions was not simply about mine closures but about creating new economic opportunities, maintaining industrial competitiveness, strengthening energy security, and achieving climate goals. Coal regions were described as testing grounds for Europe’s future green economy.

A major theme was the need to accelerate the commercial application of research results. Many promising technologies already exist, but success will depend on stable regulation, long-term investment, public acceptance, and market conditions that support large-scale deployment. Rather than liabilities, former mine and power plant sites are increasingly viewed as opportunities because they offer land, infrastructure, and water resources, coupled with skilled workforces. They are often good locations for renewable energy projects, energy storage schemes, and industrial redevelopment.

Several speakers emphasised that successful transition requires long-term strategic vision and planning, flexibility to adapt plans as circumstances change, and strong community engagement, with the aim that no one is left behind. The Ruhrgebiet’s transition from a coal-dominated economy to a knowledge-based economy was presented as an example of this approach.

The transition of the coal regions is taking place against a backdrop of geopolitical uncertainty.  Speakers stressed that Europe’s decarbonisation objectives must be balanced with energy security, supply-chain resilience, access to critical raw materials, and strategic autonomy. The restoration of land and management of water resources remain important issues for post-mining areas. Veronica Manfredi, Director for Zero Pollution, Water Resilience and Green Urban Transition at the European Commission Directorate-General for Environment, highlighted water resilience as a strategic priority and called for improved management of floods, and droughts, better quality ground and surface waters, and more efficient water use by all sectors.

RWE presented plans for Europe’s largest mine restoration project as lignite mining in the Rhenish area comes to an end by 2030. Major pit lakes will be created at the Hambach, Garzweiller and Inden mines, necessitating the construction of the Rhine water transport pipeline, as well as long-term groundwater and environmental management programmes. The company’s goal is to create stable, productive landscapes, in balance with nature, that do not require permanent intervention.

The implementation of the EU Methane Regulation presents technical and economic challenges for former mining regions. Industry representatives called for practical and proportionate measures from the EU.

Several RFCS projects were presented that demonstrate how former mining areas can support future energy systems:

• ATLANTIS: pumped-hydro storage in former open-pit mines
• TRIDENT: thermal energy storage in artificial lakes
• CORAL: iron-based energy storage systems
• HIGHWAY and HELIA: high-temperature storage and hydrogen production technologies
• POSTEN: floating solar parks on degraded mining land
• SCoLINE: solar PV systems on spoil heaps using innovative anchoring technologies

Presenters argued that former mining and power plant infrastructure can help advance the deployment of these technologies, notably their grid connections. Former mine sites are among the few remaining areas available for large-scale energy projects, especially in the densely populated Ruhr region, but competing land uses create challenges.

The afternoon session focused on the environmental rehabilitation of mines and risk management with several more RFCS projects:

• POTENTIALS: redevelopment opportunities for former mines and power stations
• CRMsDataSpace: assessment of critical raw materials recovery from abandoned mine sites
• MiDSafe: monitoring and risk assessment of mining waste dumps
• RAFF: safe pit-lake flooding and restoration
• REECOL: ecological restoration techniques
• PRIMI: production of low-carbon construction materials from mine waste clay
• PRISMINE: predictive modelling with AI for mine monitoring and recovery

A common message was that disturbed lands and mining waste should increasingly be viewed as future resources rather than environmental liabilities. However, participants highlighted several obstacles from regulatory uncertainty through financing to public acceptance. All agreed that successful transformation projects needed good communication with stakeholders.

The conference concluded with details of the reformed Research Fund for Coal and Steel which will see project support offered until 2034 with its annual budget increased to €120 million and higher funding rates aligned with Horizon Europe. New calls for proposals will open on 3 February 2027 and in June 2027.

The conference demonstrated that the focus of European coal-region policy has shifted from managing decline to creating new value. Former mines and power plants are being transformed into hubs for renewable energy and energy storage. Water management remains a critical task, but also methane management. With opportunities for critical raw-material recovery and other circular economy activities, future innovations can unlock the full potential of the coal regions, providing there is a long-term political commitment, effective regulation, public support, and sustained investment.

Photos credit: Donna und der Blitz / THGA (except where indicated)

Four years after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the European Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee on Extractive Industries met Mykhailo Volynets today to learn more about the difficulties faced by coal miners working under the shadow of armed conflict. As well as being a sitting member of the Batkivshchyna party in the Verkhovna Rada, PD Volynets heads the Independent Trade Union of Miners of Ukraine (NPGU) and chairs the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine (KVPU). He represents workers at DTEK, the country’s largest private energy company and a member of EURACOAL.

Continue reading Social Dialogue with Ukrainian colleagues →

On 15 May 2025, an international conference on the coal industry’s transition “from an industrial legend to cutting-edge research for the future” took place at the “Carbonarium” centre in Jastrzębie-Zdrój, Poland. The event, organised by EURACOAL and the European Research Executive Agency, brought together key policymakers, research engineers and representatives of the coal industry and regions from across the European Union.

An illustrated report is available here along with presentations and videos.

The conference was hosted by Europe’s largest coking coal company, Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa S.A., to discuss the challenges facing the coal sector, with a particular focus on the roles of science, technology and engineering in the EU’s green transformation and its raw material supply security.

“We don’t turn away from the past, but we are turning it into the future. Europe needs the knowledge that the mining regions have, and the RFCS (Research Fund for Coal and Steel) is the bridge between industrial heritage and green innovation,” said Alicja Krzemień, President of EURACOAL. Prof. Krzemień also pointed out that the RFCS is now a pillar in the development and deployment of modern technologies at former coal mines and power plants, by enabling projects in the fields of land remediation and new energy infrastructure based on green energy sources.

Coal mine methane and the recent EU Methane Regulation were a key focus of the meeting. The REM project on the reduction of methane emissions was presented, this being the largest such project co-financed by the Polish coal mining industry in the history of the RFCS. The ProVAM project, whose main goal is to develop methods and guidelines for the capture of methane from ventilation air, was also presented. The challenges of implementing the EU Methane Regulation were addressed by a representative of the European Commission: “Today, it is crucial that the methodology for measuring methane emissions is uniform across all mine sites. We have thousands of closed mines that need to be monitored. The most difficult is ventilation methane – its concentration is low, but the airflows are huge.”

The event, which was held under the auspices of the Polish Presidency of the European Union, was attended by 200 representatives coming from the Polish Ministry of Industry, the European Commission, and the European Research Executive Agency, as well as research scientists and industrialists from across Europe. The Polish Minister of Industry, Marzena Czarnecka, stressed the important role of Silesia. “Transformation is happening here and now. Silesia is particularly burdened with socio-economic problems. It is our duty to ensure that change is “soft”, well-planned and serves the people.” she said.

During the conference, many other recent and new RFCS projects were presented by project partners: MEMO, METH2GEN, GI-MINE, RECOVERY, GreenJOBS, TRIM4Post-Mining, RAISING, and COFA.

At a meeting of the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for the Extractive Industries hosted by the European Commission (DG EMPL) on 23 September 2024, EURACOAL, together with the social partners Euromines, IMA Europe, APEP, UEPG and IndustriAll, signed joint recommendations for the next European Mandate (2024-2029). Continue reading Social Partners Statement →

On 8 May, EURACOAL and the European Commission’s Research Executive Agency (REA) organised an event at the former Pozo Sotón coal mine near Oviedo in Asturias to promote the RFCS research programme calls and discuss future priorities.  Several EURACOAL members attended including the acting EURACOAL president, Ing. Vladimír Budinský, who delivered a keynote address with a clear message:  the RFCS is a successful research fund that now assists transformation in the coal regions and lays the foundations for new energy systems of the future.  Referring to the RFCS technical guidelines, he called for the scope of the research programme to be broadened to support a great variety of projects in line with “a climate-neutral and environmentally friendly transition”, especially the repurposing of former mines and other coal-related sites even if research activities do not directly involve coal, the “black gold”.

Former European Commissioner for Energy, Andris Piebalgs, spoke on the new EU methane regulation, while the officer responsible for coal mine methane at the UNECE joined as a panellist.  Meanwhile, Enrique Fernández, President of HUNOSA who kindly hosted the event, spoke on the transformation of Spain’s largest coal mining company.  The event was also an opportunity for the partners of several RFCS projects to present their work in public.

REA concluded with an upbeat message to the coal sector, urging researchers to submit good proposals for the €800 million budget available through to 2027.  All presentations are available at links in the report below and the event can be watched on YouTube: keynotes,  hydrogen session and methane  session (with concluding remarks).

Continue reading Report on a high-level RFCS event, 8 May 2024, Pozo Sotón, Oviedo, Spain →

As EURACOAL’s premier publication, Coal industry across Europe provides a snapshot of the coal and lignite mining industry and the influence of EU policy on the coal sector as a whole, including power generation.  With many facts and figures, it covers not only the EU, but also Energy Community countries and the UK and Morocco, given that these two coal-using countries are well interconnected with EU member states. In this 8^th edition, new chapters on phasing out coal in the EU and what a just transition means complement an updated chapter on the international coal market and global energy trends.

The association’s beautifully illustrated report was published on the web in January and is now available in hard copy (and pdf) with a foreword by Prof. Jerzy Buzek, a Member of the European Parliament since 2004, President of the European Parliament 2009-2012, and Prime Minister of Poland 1997-2001.  As he steps down from the European Parliament, he recalls his first impressions of EURACOAL in 2004 and looks to a future in which those working in the coal sector’s transformation can be as proud as their forefathers.

The European Association for Coal and Lignite or EURACOAL has members from fourteen EU member states and other countries on paths towards EU membership. In the latest edition of World Coal magazine (2023 issue 2), the association gives an overview of the industry it represents and examines upcoming EU legislation of importance for the future of coal and lignite mining and use in Europe. With climate policies pushing towards coal phase outs, the article concludes with a look at how the EU is supporting the coal regions during what will be a major transformation of the whole energy sector. To read the full article, follow this free subscription link: www.worldcoal.com.

This workshop, kindly hosted by MEP Ondřej Knotek in the European Parliament was organised by EURACOAL to promote the EU Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS). Given the interest of MEPs in the proposed Methane Regulation (COM/2021/805), projects to manage coal mine methane were presented by experts in this field from industry and academia. The European Commission was represented in person by Jane Amilhat, Head of Unit – Low Emission Future Industries at the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, and Sebastiano Fumero, Head of Unit responsible for implementing the RFCS research programme. Participants were also honoured to be joined by MEP Ondřej Kovařík and MEP Martina Dlabajová. Continue reading RFCS workshop, European Parliament, 23 May 2023 →

The European Parliament’s work on the proposed Methane Regulation temporarily stalled following revelations that a US-funded green NGO prepared the internal documents used by one of the responsible rapporteurs during negotiations. With the file now progressing again, albeit without one of the original co-rapporteurs, EURACOAL offers its opinion on the regulation. Continue reading EURACOAL opinion on the proposed methane regulation →

On 22 March, EURACOAL participated in the VII Silesia 2030 conference, hosted by MEP Grzegorz Tobiszowski in the European Parliament, Brussels. The event, chaired by Tomasz Zjawiony, President of the Regional Chamber of Commerce in Katowice, examined the growing global demand for critical raw materials (CRMs) and rare earth elements (REEs). These are essential inputs to build the component parts of a clean energy system, as envisaged by the European Green Deal, but their supply is often concentrated in the hands of just a few, non-EU producers, notably China, and with only around 1% recycled.

Continue reading Shining a light on the European Green Deal →

On Monday, 23 January 2023, EURACOAL organised an energy lunch in Brussels. Outgoing EURACOAL President, Ing. Vladimír Budinský, welcomed invited guests to hear presentations from the International Energy Agency (IEA) and RWE.

Members of the European Parliament, colleagues from industry, the media and the European Commission discussed with EURACOAL members the current energy crisis. Carlos Fernández Alvarez presented the IEA’s coal market outlook to 2025, as well as the agency’s views on coal in net-zero transitions. Continue reading To phase out coal, roll out renewables! →

On 22 March, EURACOAL members joined Commission officials and other stakeholders at a summit meeting in Brussels to launch the first “Big-Ticket” call under the recently modernised EU Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS). The RFCS was established in 2002 after the fifty-year treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) expired. At the coal day, there was a broad discussion on technologies and their role in a “just transition”, but also on energy security. During the preceding steel day, emphasis was put on the green transition, with discussions on how to curb emissions in the steel sector, the need for digitalisation and the rollout of hydrogen in steel production. This 20^th anniversary celebration was web-streamed.

Continue reading RFCS Coal Summit 2022, Brussels →