In view of the acute fuelwood deficit the entire Malawi tobacco industry is facing, and particularly the flue-cured tobacco sector, an investigation was conducted between 1991 and 1994 at Mwinba Research Station in Kasungu, Malawi, to find ways of combusting coal as an alternative curing fuel in a naturally aspirated but modified wood furnace. Conventional flue barns, 4.8m x 4.8m with six tiers were used. Monitored in the investigation were the fuel specific consumption and economics of usage, stoking methods, energy use efficiency, influence on total curing time and quality of cured leaf. The control fuels were fuelwood and charcoal, currently recommended curing fuels in Malawi. Results of the investigation have clearly indicated the suitability of coal as a curing fuel, provided ROM coal is used in a modified wood furnace incorporating a wider fire grater than recommended for fuelwood. The economics of usage were found to compare favourably with the control fuels despite the 400 km distance to the source of coal. At an achieved specific fuel consumption of 3.8 kg per kg cured leaf, a cost figure of MK 1,200 (USD 180) per tonne cured leaf including transport was established as compared with MK 450 (USD 67) for fuelwood at the same site or MK 1,080 (USD 160) for ordinary growers in the same area, collecting wood from places in excess of 80 km. Compared with charcoal costing MK 1,621 (USD 240) per tonne cured leaf at a specific fuel consumption of 3 kg/kg cured leaf, coal was found to be a cheaper alternative. The most efficiently utilised fuel on MJ/kg of cured leaf basis was coal (95 MJ/kg leaf) while charcoal had the least efficiency (125 MJ/kg leaf). There were no observable or measurable differences in total curing time (hours) and quality of cured leaf in terms of proportion of non saleable grades of the cured leaf.