Hatfield Colliery is 48% owned by former RJB Mining and UK Coal chief Richard Budge, and 52% owned by Russia’s second-biggest coal company, KRU.

The financing has been provided by Russian-owned bank VTB Bank Europe.

According to the Times, Budge and KRU aim to build a £1 billion clean-coal generator next to the colliery. Budge said the generator could be operational by 2011, and construction work could begin at the end of next year.

The Hatfield Colliery, located near Doncaster, aims to produce 2.2 million tonnes per annum from the 10 foot (3 metre) Barnsley seam.

Budge bought the Hatfield mine in 2004, the centrepiece of a planned initial public offering on London's Alternative Investment Market. That plan fell through when the Russian investment came up.

During October last year Hatfield ordered two longwall systems, each consisting of a Joy 7LS shearer, 772 ton (700 tonne) capacity hydraulic roof supports with Joy's RS20s control system, and an armoured face conveyor and stage loader, as well as ancillary equipment.