The economic recovery of China, India and the United States is likely to push global coal demand to new all-time highs According to the International Energy Agency’s latest forecast.
Global coal-fired electricity production will reach 10,350 terawatt hours for the whole of this year. That’s about nine percent more than last year. The main cause, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), will be a rapid economic recovery. And the demand for electricity is growing faster than low-emission energy sources are able to increase their supply.
Total global demand for coal, including coal used not only in the energy sector, will increase by six percent this year. While this will not be enough to break the previous record set in 2013 this year, according to the IEA, a new high will fall in the coming year. “This is a cautionary tale of how far the world has gone from the path to low-emission sources,” Fatih Birol, the IEA’s executive director, said.
China is responsible for more than half of global electricity generation with the help of coal. This year, the consumption of this mineral for electricity production in China will increase by 9 percent, in India it is expected to be up to 12 percent this year compared to 2020.
