Coal mines have seen a revival in their fortunes due to a steep rise in the price of coal and the soaring cost of energy. The promise of a nuclear energy renaissance in Britain and elsewhere in Europe today drove state-owned power group EDF to record highs on the Paris stock exchange, where it became France's biggest listed company.

EDF, which has 5.5 million customers in Britain and has teamed up with Areva in bidding for a licence to build a third-generation European pressurised reactor (EPR) in the UK, overtook French oil company Total on the CAC-40.