Joint Venture Agreement

UK Coal PLC
17 March 2006


                                  UK COAL PLC

                            JOINT VENTURE AGREEMENT

UK COAL Plc and Hargreaves Services plc today announce the intended formation of
a 50:50 joint venture company, Coal 4 Energy Ltd.


The new company will market and distribute coal products to the domestic and
light industrial markets. Planned to commence trading on 1st April 2006, the new
company will have an annual turnover in the region of £50 million.


UK COAL, Britain's biggest coal producer, already has a long term trade
relationship with Hargreaves who have the largest bulk delivery fleet in the UK,
and are the largest independent importers of domestic and industrial coal.


The combination of UK COAL and Hargreaves in this joint venture brings together
key producers and suppliers of domestic and industrial coal in the United
Kingdom. The new venture will be located at Kellingley Colliery in West
Yorkshire, currently a major source of coal for the industrial and domestic
markets.


The productive capacity of UK COAL, together with the logistical and marketing
skills of Hargreaves, will enable both parties through Coal 4 Energy Ltd, to
meet market demand in a more efficient and cost effective way, which will be of
benefit to the consumer.


For further information:


UK COAL

Financial                     Ken Cronin             Tel: [phone]
                                                     Mob: [phone]

Operational                 Stuart Oliver            Tel: [phone]
                                                     Mob: [phone]

HARGREAVES

                           Gordon Banham             Tel: [phone]
                           Peter Dillon              Tel: [phone]


Buchanan Communications    Diane Stewart             Tel: [phone]


Bergmans PR Consultants    Robin Ashby                Tel: [phone]


Background notes:


UK COAL: With its headquarters at Harworth, near Doncaster, UK COAL is Britain's
biggest coal producer, with output last year of 10 million tonnes. The company
operates seven deep mines and produces a range of power station, industrial and
domestic coal.


HARGREAVES: Based in County Durham, Hargreaves have a long association with UK
COAL and in June last year, acquired the Monckton Coke & Chemical Company which
had been owned by UK COAL for over a decade. The UK's largest independent
producer and distributor of coke products, Hargreaves now employs more than 600
people.


ENDS



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