The Transformation of the Polish Coal Sector

The report examines the restructuring of Poland's coal sector following the 1989 transition to a market economy. While the sector successfully reduced its workforce from 388,000 in 1990 to 98,000 in 2015 and closed 40 of 70 collieries, it struggled with persistent lack of profitability and significant social costs. The authors analyze the Mining Social Package (MSP) and special privileges for mining communes, noting that while the MSP effectively reduced employment, it led to long-term labor market inactivity due to a lack of comprehensive job-seeking support. The report concludes that coal phase-out requires integrated regional development and mandatory professional retraining to avoid social exclusion.

• Poland achieved a massive reduction in coal sector employment between 1990 and 2015, with the number of miners falling from 388,000 to 98,000. The vast majority of this decline, 85 per cent, occurred before 2002.
• Hard coal production in Poland declined significantly over 25 years, dropping from approximately 150 million tonnes to 73 million tonnes by 2014. Consequently, Poland's share of global production fell from 4.7 per cent in 1990 to 1.2 per cent in 2014.
• The Mining Social Package (MSP) successfully reduced the workforce by 67,000 workers and increased labor productivity by 40 per cent between 1998 and 2002. However, it failed as an active labor market policy; 35 per cent of those receiving redundancy payments remained unemployed five to six years later.
• Special privileges for 'mining communes' introduced in 1998 aimed to stimulate regional job creation, but were often ineffective. Over 80 per cent of acquired mine properties were used for public utility functions rather than economic activity, and preferential loans remained largely unused due to a lack of local know-how.
• The Polish coal sector remained under state control throughout the transformation, which the report argues limited the positive influence of the free market and made the sector vulnerable to political pressure and clientelism.
• Coal's role in Poland's primary energy supply decreased from 76 per cent in 1990 to 53 per cent in 2014, though it remains the most important primary energy fuel due to the scarcity of other domestic sources and concerns over dependence on Russian energy imports.

APA

Szpor, A., & Ziółkowska, K. (2018). The Transformation of the Polish Coal Sector. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/transformation-polish-coal-sector.pdf

Chicago

Szpor, Aleksander, and Konstancja Ziółkowska. The Transformation of the Polish Coal Sector. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2018. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/transformation-polish-coal-sector.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Szpor |first1=Aleksander |last2=Ziółkowska |first2=Konstancja |title=The Transformation of the Polish Coal Sector |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=January 2018 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/transformation-polish-coal-sector.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{szpor2018transformation, author = {Szpor, Aleksander and Ziółkowska, Konstancja}, title = {{The Transformation of the Polish Coal Sector}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2018}, month = jan, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/transformation-polish-coal-sector.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }