Plans for Britain’s first new coal mine in 30 years have been blocked by authorities, weeks after the Labour Government withdrew support for it over environmental concerns.
Three licence applications were rejected for the mine in Cumbria, which has been a target for net zero protesters, on Friday in a further blow to the project after its planning permission was overturned earlier this month.
The Coal Authority, an independent body sponsored by Ed Miliband’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, did not say why the applications were rejected for the Woodhouse Colliery, near Whitehaven.
It says it accepts or refuses licences based on conditions such as the financial sustainability of the operations and the damage they might cause.
However, the project has been met with fierce opposition from climate campaigners, with both Friends of the Earth and South Lakes Action on Climate Change suing the Government to stop the project.
The decision was subsequently overturned in the High Court, with a judge saying the decision to grant permission by the previous government in 2022 was “legally flawed”.
The Labour Government had ceased to defend the decision to grant planning permission.
Mr Miliband had been a heavy critic of the proposed mine. While in opposition, he said he would seek to prevent the “climate-destroying coal mine”, and said that people in Cumbria should have “green jobs”.
The mine owner, West Cumbria Mining, had promised to produce high-grade metallurgical coal to power Britain’s steel industry and expected to produce 3.5m tonnes a year.
It had pledged to be the lowest-emission coal mine in the world and employ more than 500 people.
West Cumbria Mining did not immediately comment on the decision. The refusal can be appealed.
A spokesman for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: “The decision not to grant West Cumbria Mining’s licence is a matter for the Coal Authority and relates to a historical application submitted last year.
“We want to bring an end to the country’s dependence on fossil fuel markets, including coal – and we’ve already taken immediate steps to unleash investment in clean homegrown power, supporting skilled jobs across the country.”