§ Mr. George Rodgersasked the Secretary of State for Energy what is the anticipated level of coal importation during the next five years.
§ Mr. BennImports and exports of coal are subject to a wide range of internal and external factors and are very erratic from year to year. Thus in the past five years imports of coal have fluctuated from well under 1 million to nearly 5 million tons. In 1974 the figure was about 3.5 million tons, and a slightly higher total is likely this year. It is impossible to make a firm forecast up to five years ahead, but as current contracts expire I expect a marked decline.