Global demand for coal is expected to remain largely stable through 2024, driven by robust economic growth and the construction of new coal-fired power plants in Asia, particularly in China and India, according to new data from the International Energy Agency.
Global demand for coal is expected to remain largely stable through 2024, driven by robust economic growth and the construction of new coal-fired power plants in Asia, particularly in China and India, according to new data from the International Energy Agency. The trend comes despite declines in coal usage in the United States and Europe and the continued adoption of renewable energy, Bloomberg and Reuters reported.
“Despite the growth in low-carbon fuels in recent decades, the reality is coal remains a major fuel in global energy markets … the world consumes 65 percent more coal today than in the year 2000,” the EIA report says.
India, for instance, aims to become a $5 trillion economy by 2024, which will increase its demand for electricity. The country is investing heavily in renewable energy, with wind capacity expected to double and solar capacity to increase four-fold in the next five years. But as the IEA notes, India is also expected to increase its coal-fired power generation 4.6 percent each year over the same period. Coal demand elsewhere in Southeast Asia is also expected to grow by more than 5 percent per year through 2024, led by Indonesia and Vietnam.
Read more at Yale Environment 360
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