To ask the Secretary of State for Energy what assessment he has made of the cost to the domestic electricity consumer of the requirement for electricity generating companies to purchase their fuel from British Coal; and what is the difference between British Coal prices and the current world price for coal.

There is no requirement for electricity generating companies to purchase their fuel from British Coal. National Power and PowerGen currently have contracts with British Coal, in place until March 1993.The average British Coal price in 1990–91 was £41·78 per tonne, compared to an average price of power station coal imported into the European Community of approximately £25 per tonne, for the same year.