AGE & OCCURRENCE

OF COAL
Introduction
▪ Coal is a unique type of rock in the geological column, with a wide range of
physical and chemical properties.

▪ The episodes of coal development in the geological column (e.g.

Carboniferous, Cretaceous, Paleogene and Neogene Periods) are given
together with principal coal occurrences worldwide.

▪ The principal uses of traded coals worldwide is for electricity generation and

steel manufacture, with other industrial users and domestic consumption
making up the remainder.

▪ In most industrial countries, coal has historically been a key source of energy
and a major contributor to economic growth.
▪ Coals are the result of the accumulation of
vegetable debris in a specialized
environment of deposition.

▪ Such accumulations have been affected by

syn-sedimentary and post-sedimentary
influences to produce coals of
differing rank and differing degrees of
structural complexity, the two being
closely interlinked.
Origin of Coal
▪ Although land plants first developed in the Lower
Palaeozoic Era, and coal deposits of Devonian age
are the earliest known.

▪ It was not until the Upper Palaeozoic Era,

particularly the Carboniferous and Permian
Periods, that sufficient plant cover was established
and preserved to produce significant coal
accumulations.

▪ Within this geological age range there have been

three major episodes of coal accumulation.

▪ The figure below shows the worldwide distribution

of world coal deposits along with their age and
locations.
▪ It took place during the Late Carboniferous
to Early Permian periods.

▪ Coals formed at this time now form the bulk of the

black coal reserves of the world, and are
represented on all of the continents. 

▪ The coals are usually of high rank and may have First Episode
undergone significant structural change. of Coal
▪ In the Northern hemisphere these deposits are
found in Canada and the US, through Europe and
Accumulatio
Common Wealth Independent States (CIS) to the n
far East.

▪ In the Southern hemisphere coals of

Gondwanaland are present in South America,
Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia,
Australia, and Antarctica.
 Second
▪ The second episode occurred during the Episode of
Jurassic–Cretaceous period, and coals of
this age are present in Canada, the United Coal
States, China and the CIS. Accumulatio
n
▪ The third major episode occurred during
the Paleogene–Neogene Periods. Coals formed
during this period range from lignite to anthracite.

▪ Paleogene–Neogene coals form the bulk of the

world’s brown coal reserves, but also make up a Third
significant percentage of black coals currently
mined.
Episode of
▪ They are characterized by thick seams and have
Coal
often undergone minimal structural change. Accumulatio
▪ Paleogene–Neogene coals are also found n
worldwide, and are the focus of current
exploration and production as the traditional
Carboniferous coalfields become depleted or
geologically too difficult to mine.
▪ During the Carboniferous Period, in the
northern part of Pangaea (Laurasia), the
coal basins of western and central Europe,
Floras in
eastern United States and CIS were
equatorial in nature and tropical peat
Different
mires containing a flora of Lepidodendron, Climates of
Sigillaria and Chordaites were
characteristic of coal deposition. Geological
▪ The figure for the Carboniferous Period is Ages
illustrated below.
▪ The climate changed during the Permian
Period and coal deposition ceased in the
northern area. 

▪ In the southern part of

Pangaea (Gondwanaland), covering what
is now South America, southern Africa,
India, Australia and Antarctica, peat mires
formed under cooler more temperate
conditions, characterized by the
Glossopteris flora.

▪ The figure is illustrated below of the coal

deposits.
▪ After the breakup of Pangaea, coal deposition
continued through the Triassic, Jurassic and
Cretaceous Periods and the Paleogene–Neogene
Periods, where another change in the floral types
took place, heralding the onset of Angiosperm floras.

▪ These changes in vegetation type are reflected in the

type and proportion of maceral types present in the
coals. 

▪ The Laurasian coals are rich in the vitrinite group of

macerals whereas the Gondwana coals have a much
higher percentage of the inertinite group of
macerals with varying amounts of vitrinite.

▪ Gondwana coals have a higher content of mineral

matter but lower sulfur contents than the Laurasian
coals.
Areas of Coal Deposition in Jurassic-Cretaceous
Times
Areas of Coal Depositon in Paleogene-Neogene
Times
▪ The Paleogene–Neogene coals are, for the
most part, lignites and are found
worldwide, although in some areas they
have undergone severe temperature and
pressure changes which has produced
higher rank coal, ranging from
subbituminous to high volatile bituminous
in areas such as Indonesia, Colombia and
Venezuela.
Stratigraphy
▪ The age of all the major coal deposits is well
documented, and the stratigraphy of each deposit
has been studied in detail.

▪ This is particularly true for those deposits that have

an economic potential.

▪ The origin of coal is characterized by deposition in

foredeep and cratonic basins.

▪ The essentially non-marine nature of these

coal-bearing sequences has meant that detailed
chronostratigraphy has often been difficult to apply
due to the lack of biostratigraphic evidence.
▪ The establishment of a stratigraphic framework for
a coal-bearing sequence can be approached in two
ways, an examination of the sedimentary sequence
in which the coals occur, and a detailed study of the
coals themselves.
▪ It is usual to apply a combination of
chronostratigraphy (where possible) and
lithostratigraphy for individual coal deposits. 
▪ This may be supported by geophysics and detailed
sedimentological studies.  
▪ The combination of all these studies is the basis on
which to build the geological model and to develop
a three-dimensional picture of the coal deposit.
 Age and
Geophysical
Distribution
of Coal
▪ A brief summary is given of the geographic
distribution of the known coal deposits of the
world. It is designed as a guide to the location of
the principal coalfields throughout the world. 

▪ The detailed stratigraphical ages of the deposits

are not given, usually only the geological period
in which they were formed.

▪ The distribution of coal deposits throughout the

world are dealt with in nine geographical regions.
▪ The coal deposits of the United States have
been divided into six separate areas or
provinces, based on the findings of the US
Geological Survey given in the figure
below, while the largest coal-bearing
North
region is located in western Canada,
stretching from south Saskatchewan
America
across Alberta into British Columbia.
▪ Coal deposits of Palaeozoic
(Carboniferous), Mesozoic and Cenozoic
(Paleogene–Neogene) age are developed
in a series of basins that stretch from the
United Kingdom in the west to Turkey in
the east. The full range of black and brown
coals are present, and all of the most Europe
accessible deposits have been worked
extensively over the past 150 years.

▪  Those European countries with recorded

coal deposits are listed alphabetically and
shown on map.
 ▪ Albania 
▪ Austria
▪ Belgium
▪ Bosnia
▪ Bulgaria
List of Coal
▪ Czech Republic
Producing
▪ Denmark
European ▪ France
Countries ▪ Germany
▪ Georgia
▪ Greece
▪ Holland
 ▪ Hungary

▪ Ireland

▪ Italy

▪ Kosovo

▪ Montenegro
List of Coal ▪ Poland

Producing ▪ Portugal

European ▪ Romania

Countries ▪ Serbia

▪ Spain

▪ Spitzbergen 

▪ Turkey

▪ United Kingdom
▪ The occurrences of black coal in Africa are: (i)
those deposits of Carboniferous age found on the
northern coast, in Morocco in the west and Egypt in
the east; and (ii), more importantly, the widespread
Karroo deposits of Late Carboniferous–Permian age,
which are found throughout central and southern
Africa. 

▪ The Karoo sequences were deposited on the

Gondwana supercontinent which split apart in the Africa
Mesozoic Period, hence the similarities of
African Gondwana coals with those of India and South
America.

▪ Brown coals of Paleogene–Neogene age are present,

but in Africa it is the black coals that are of prime
interest.

▪ The principal coal occurrences are shown.

 ▪ Angola

▪ Botswana

▪ Cameroon

▪ Egypt

▪ Ethiopia
List of Coal ▪ Malagasy Republic

Producing ▪ Malawi

Countries ▪ Mali

in Africa ▪ Morocco

▪ Mozambique

▪ Nambia

▪ Niger
 ▪ Nigeria
▪ South Africa

List of Coal ▪ Swaziland

Producing ▪ Tanzania
Countries ▪ Zaire
in Africa ▪ Zambia
▪ Zimbabwe
▪ Coal deposits are distributed throughout
Central and South America and make up a
significant proportion of world reserves of
black coal. 

▪ The majority of coals are of Cenozoic Central &

(Paleogene–Neogene) age.  South
▪ Coals of Palaeozoic (Gondwana) age are
present in eastern South America, in Brazil
America
and Uruguay, and Mesozoic coals are
found in discrete deposits throughout the
region.
 ▪ Argentina
▪ Bolivia
▪ Brazil
▪ Chile
List of Coal
Producing ▪ Columbia
Countries in ▪ Costa Rica
Central & ▪ Ecuador
South Ameri ▪ Mexico
ca
▪ Peru
▪ Uruguay
▪ Venenzuela
▪ The CIS is the third largest coal producer in the world. 
▪ It has vast reserves of all ranks of coal stretching across
the whole of the country.

▪ Thick coal-bearing sequences range from

Palaeozoic (Carboniferous–Permian), Mesozoic
(Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous) to Cenozoic in age.
Common
▪  These are preserved in a series of large sedimentary Wealth of
basins, which generally become younger from west to
east. 
Independen
▪ Most of the older basins are structurally disturbed,
t States
resulting in steeply dipping seams and extensive
faulting.
(CIS)
▪ The potential for production is enormous, however,
geographical position, severe climatic conditions and
poor infrastructure may curtail the development of
many of these deposits.
 ▪ Kazakhstan
List of Coal ▪ Russia
Producing
▪ Tajikistan
Countries
in CIS ▪ Ukraine
▪ The Far East region contains 13 countries
with known coal deposits. 

▪ By far the largest of these is the Peoples

Republic of China, which has vast
resources of all ranks of coal. Far East
▪  The coals of the Far East range in age
from Palaeozoic to Cenozoic, and all ranks
of coal are present.
 ▪ Brunel
▪ Burma
▪ Peoples Republic of China

List of Coal ▪ Indonesia

Producing ▪ Japan
Countries ▪ Democratic Republic of (North) Korea
in the Far ▪ Republic of (South) Korea
East ▪ Laos
▪ Malaysia
▪ Mongolia
List of Coal ▪ Philippines

Producing ▪ Taiwan
Countries ▪ Thailand
in the Far ▪ Peoples Republic of Vietnam
East
▪ Australasia is one of the major coal
producers in the world. 

▪ The bulk of the coal resources are located

in the eastern part of Australia, with
Australia
smaller coal deposits in Western Australia
and New Zealand
List of Coal ▪ Australia
Producing
▪ James Row Island (Antarctica)
Countries
in Australia
▪ The area delineated the Indian
Subcontinent extends from Iran in the west
to Bangladesh in the east. Black coals
are of Palaeozoic
(Carboniferous–Permian), Mesozoic
and Cenozoic age.  Indian
▪ Brown coals are of Cenozoic age. Subcontinen
▪  Palaeozoic Gondwana coals are found in
India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, Mesozoic
t
coals are present in Afghanistan, India,
Pakistan and Iran, and Cenozoic coals are
found in all the countries listed in this
region.
 ▪ Afghanistan 
List of Coal
▪ Bangladesh
Producing
Countries in ▪ India
Indian ▪ Iran
Subcontinen
▪ Pakistan
t
Coal in Pakistan
▪ All the principal coalfields in Pakistan are
of Paleogene–Neogene age, although
Palaeozoic and Mesozoic coals are
present.

▪  The coalfields of economic importance

are situated in three distinct coal
regions, Sindh, Quetta-Kalat and Salt
Range–Makerwal. 
Pakistan
▪ Most of these coalfields have been
structurally disturbed.

▪  The central part of Sindh Province

contains the coalfields of Lakhra,
Sonda-Thatta and Meting-Shimpir.
▪ Seams are up to 2m in thickness, and the coal
is subbituminous, non-coking with high sulfur
content. 

▪ In eastern Sindh province, the Thar Coalfield

covers an area of 9000 km2.

▪ Miocene lignites are low in sulfur and can be

in excess of 30m in thickness.

▪  This coalfield is targeted to provide fuel for Pakistan

electricity generation and industrial use.

▪ The Quetta-Kalat province contains the

coalfields of Sor Range-Daghari, Khost
Sharig-Harnai and Duki-Chamalang. 

▪ Again the coal is subbituminous with high ash

and sulfur contents.
▪ The Salt Range–Makerwal province comprises
the coalfields of eastern, central and western
Salt Range, together with the Makerwal
Coalfield to the west of these. 

▪ Coals are subbituminous, with high ash and

sulfur contents. 
Pakistan
▪ Overall production is small, the coal being
used chiefly for electricity generation.
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