ABSTRACT
Though coal is once again in an ascendant phase there is no guarantee that later political administrations will continue to endorse its major importance to the nation. The period from 1980 onwards will be the crucial time, for from that date national policy on coal’s relationship with oil will no longer be determined by considerations of balance of payments and security of supply – at least for a probable twenty-year period – but by longer-term assessments. These will include issues such as the life of reserves of the fossil fuels, coal, gas and oil, with their implications for both fuel and chemical supplies, and the rate at which nuclear energy can be phased in (which is why some of the relevant issues were examined in the previous chapter).
