UK Heating and Cooling Demand Over Coal Mine Workings at 5km Hex Resolution

A UK-wide geospatial dataset produced in collaboration with the Ordnance Survey (OS) to identify areas with potential for mine water heat schemes. It shows the extent of underground mine workings, building type distribution, and total annual heating and cooling demand in gigawatt-hours per year, all aggregated to a 5km hexagonal grid. The dataset was published by the Mining Remediation Authority (formerly the Coal Authority) and was last updated in April 2026.

Use Cases

• Identify high-demand areas for mine water heat schemes based on aggregated heating and cooling demand figures.
• Analyze the spatial correlation between building types and energy demand across former UK coalfields.
• Screen potential locations for subsurface geothermal projects based on the mapped extent of underground mine workings.

Strengths

• Data is aggregated to a standardized 5km hexagonal grid for spatial analysis.
• Includes quantified annual heating and cooling demand in GWh/yr per spatial unit.
• Produced in collaboration with the authoritative national mapping agency, Ordnance Survey.

Limitations

• Dataset does not guarantee the technical or regulatory feasibility of any heat scheme.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and specific data collection methodology are unknown.

Provenance

Source

Mining Remediation Authority (formerly the Coal Authority) in collaboration with Ordnance Survey (OS).

Collection Method

Produced to create a geospatial layer for identifying areas impacted by mine water heat opportunities.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-14 15:07:01.206758; freshness should be verified.

Geography

United Kingdom, specifically its coalfields.