First profit in four years for UK Coal, but pit closure still likely

UK Coal posted a profit for the first time in four years yesterday – but said it is still in talks about closing its Daw Mill pit in the West Midlands.

The mining group reported a pre-tax profit of £58m for 2011 compared with losses of £124.6m a year earlier, but its chairman, Jonson Cox, said: "Recent performance at Daw Mill, the near-doubling of our pension deficit and the level of debt in the mining business have continued to highlight how much remains to be done to put UK Coal on a stable footing." UK Coal's pension scheme deficit has risen from about £250m in 2009 to £430m at the end of last year.