Directors Interests

UK Coal PLC
10 March 2003

                                   UK COAL PLC

                      NOTIFICATION OF DIRECTORS' INTERESTS

UK COAL wishes to notify the following changes in directors' interests arising
out of the operation of its Bonus Share Matching Plan.

1.      Bonus Share Matching Plan

Under the Bonus Share Matching Plan, executive directors are required to
purchase ordinary shares in the Company (Shares) with part of their annual
bonus.  These Shares are held in trust.  Participants are entitled to receive,
after tax thereon, one additional Share free of charge in return for every three
Shares left in trust for three years.  Entitlement to the additional Shares is
normally lost if the participant leaves the Company's employment.

On 7 March 2003 the following Shares were purchased, at a price of £0.65 per
Share, with 50% of each executive director's bonus for 2002.  These are held by
Mourant & Co Trustees Limited (The Trustee of UK COAL Employee Share Trust) (the
Trustee) as nominee for the director concerned.

DIRECTOR                                  SHARES PURCHASED
G A McPhie                                51,831
M Garness                                 29,338
P S O'Brien                               29,738

In addition, the Trustee purchased a further 37446 Shares to satisfy potential
entitlements of executive directors to further Shares under this plan in three
years' time.  The above executive directors are deemed for Companies Act
purposes to be interested in all the Shares held by UK COAL Employee Share
Trust.

2.          Resultant Interest in Shares

As a result of the transactions referred to above, the executive directors are
interested in the following Shares (excluding Shares to which they may become
entitled, subject to satisfaction of any relevant conditions, under the rules of
the Long Term Incentive Plan and Bonus Share Matching Plan):


DIRECTOR                                  TOTAL SHARE INTEREST
G A McPhie                                182,089
M Garness                                 128,346
P S O'Brien                               158,179

The UK COAL Employee Share Trust holds a total of 96110 Shares, representing
0.07% of the Company's issued share capital (excluding the shares held as
nominees for executive directors under the Bonus Share Matching Plan). The
executive directors are deemed for Companies Act purposes to be interested in
all the Shares held by UK COAL Employee Share Trust.




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