Comparative Analysis of Domestic Production and Import of Hard Coal in Poland: Conclusions for Energy Policy and Competitiveness

Izabela Jonek-Kowalska () and Wieslaw Grebski
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Izabela Jonek-Kowalska: Faculty of Organization and Management, The Silesian University of Technology, 44-100 Gliwice, Poland
Wieslaw Grebski: Penn State Hazleton, Pennsylvania State University, 76 University Drive, Hazleton, PA 18202, USA

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 20, 1-22

Abstract: In many energy policies, including Poland’s, environmental priorities clash with the issue of energy security. With these contradictions in mind, the main objective of the article is a comparative analysis of domestic production and imports of hard coal in Poland and the formulation of conclusions for energy policy and competitiveness. The analysis covers the years 2018–2023 and concerns three issues: the volume and directions of coal imports to Poland, the qualitative and price competitiveness of coal, and the possibility of substituting imported coal with domestic coal. The research used statistical analysis. Indicators of structure and dynamics as well as comparative analysis were also used. The analysis shows that the structure of coal importers to Poland is quite diverse and includes many geographic directions. However, until 2021, it was dominated by Russia, followed by Colombia, indicating a fairly homogeneous supply market and a continuing tendency to depend on a single importer. Analysis of qualitative competitiveness confirms the existence of balance and industrial resources whose quality parameters (sulfur content, ash content, and calorific value) are comparable to and better than those of imported coal. Polish hard coal can also compete with imported coal in terms of price. From 2021 to 2023, it was clearly cheaper than foreign coal. In the above circumstances, it is quite difficult to unequivocally assess the reasons for importing coal to Poland and to justify dependence on external suppliers. This is especially relevant since domestic mining in 2020–2023 remains stable (periodically even increasing), which does not indicate a decisive shift away from coal as an energy resource.

Keywords: coal import; price competitiveness; quality competitiveness; energy policy; energy security; decarbonization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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