In the second half of each month, we publish a set of key statistics on coal mining in Poland on our blog. The data is published with a 1.5-month delay, following announcements by the Energy Market Agency and the Industrial Development Agency, Katowice Branch.
Last month, we added a brand-new page to the platform, packed with mining-related content. If you want to learn about methane emissions from mining in Poland, check it out!
To begin with, let’s take a look at how much electricity was produced from hard coal and other fuels over the month. Supplying a substantial part of the demand is coal’s fundamental, though not the only role.
The September electricity mix reflected the change of the season. Wind turbine production increased (+490 GWh), while PV production decreased (-710 GWh), although weather conditions and the ongoing growth in the number of installations still allowed for a record (for September) share of 15%. After August’s ‘rally’, biomass returned to its previous generation level. There was more electricity from gas (+140 GWh), but the most significant increase since August was recorded by hard coal-fired power plants (+540 GWh). Overall, hard coal and lignite were the leading sources, followed by solar and wind, with gas close behind. Domestic power plants produced slightly more electricity than in the usually less demanding summer months. Clean sources accounted for 30% of production, and coal for 50%.
It is also worth noting the changes in monthly installed capacity – there was a decrease of 460 MW for hard-coal-fired power plants. As far as we know, this was not due to the shutdown of any of the recently-operating large units (which would have had to be announced in advance), but rather to the dismantling of equipment from one of the long-decommissioned installations.
More data is available on the chart Electricity production, source: ARE and Electricity generation capacity, source: ARE.
Hard coal in Poland - September 2025
Below, we analyse the monthly data from the hard coal sector. The comments refer to the charts constantly available on energy.instrat.pl in the Mining section.
Symbols mean:
↗ a rise
↘ a decrease
= marginal or no difference in comparison to the previous month
Production and sales of hard coal​
COAL PRODUCTION – 3.75 Mt ↗
COAL SALES – 3.82 Mt ↗
Both figures recorded very high increases compared to how it’s been going in recent years. Production increased by 660 000 tonnes and sales by 630 000 tonnes. Such jumps occur once a year or even less frequently. Consumption increased in both power plants and combined heat and power plants and they also strengthened their reserves for another month in a row.
Hard coal reserves
TOTAL – 12.14 Mt ↗
RESERVES AT MINING SITES (mining) – 5.44 Mt ↘
RESERVES AT MINING SITES, PURCHASED (by power industry) – 0.31 Mt =
RESERVES AT POWER PLANTS (power industry) – 6.39 Mt ↗
Another month of coal reserves’ growth. This was driven by power plants and combined heat and power plants filling their bunkers before winter. The increase, which has been ongoing for three months, is sharp – since June, it has amounted to 30%. Usually, the peak value occurs in October or even December, so further growth can be expected. The demand has allowed for a reduction of reserves at mining sites, but only to a small extent.
Employment
71 666 persons ↘
The number of employees decreased by 150 during the month, which is one of the smallest reductions this year. The balance of FTEs over 12 months shows a steady decline of over 3 000.
Hard coal price for electricity generation (PSCMI1)
PSCMI 1 – 331 PLN/t ↗ 15.31 PLN/GJ ↗
The price of hard coal for the electricity sector saw its first noticeable increase in seven months, albeit still modest – the difference per tonne amounted to a few złotys, translating into a 1% increase.
Hard coal price for heating (PSCMI 2)
PSCMI 2 – 449 PLN/t 
 19.35 PLN/GJ =
The price per tonne of hard coal for heating supplied in September was slightly higher than in August, but its calorific value was also higher, so the price per GJ remained unchanged. Prices seem to be stabilising after falling in the wake of the energy crisis.
Price of domestic (PSCMI 1) vs imported (ARA) hard coal
PSCMI 1 – 15.31 PLN/GJ ↗
Import (ARA) – 17.58 PLN/GJ ↗
Hard coal arriving at Polish ports in September cost PLN 0.27 more per gigajoule – a slight increase. Its price is subject to fairly regular monthly fluctuations. The price of domestic coal for the electricity sector (PSCMI 1) remains close to this value (specifically: below it, to remain competitive), but its course is relatively stable.
We compare the prices of energy coal (PSCMI 1) with imported energy coal in a unit that takes into account quality differences [PLN/GJ]. Coal for heating (PSCMI 2) is filtered out by default.
More data is available in the section “Coal prices and production costs (PL vs import)”
That is all in the current issue. We thank you for reading our Coal Brief and invite you to share it.
More information
If you are looking for more information about mining, check out our recently updated database: Coal mines in Poland. It contains, among others, a complete list of active deposits, annual statistics of mines and the current closure dates. We invite you to take a look at it!Â
Contact
Wojciech Przedlacki, Product Owner energy.instrat.pl, [email protected]
