Coal rebounding, threatening climate action, IEA warns

Coal is loaded into a truck at an open-cast mine near Dhanbad, an eastern Indian city in Jharkhand state, Friday, Sept. 24, 2021. On Saturday, India asked for a crucial last minute-change to the final agreement at crucial climate talks in Glasgow, calling for the "phase-down" not the "phase-out" of coal power. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Altaf Qadri, STF / Associated Press

WASHINGTON - After years of decline, coal demand is rebounding again as global energy demand soars amid loosening Covid-19 restrictions.

The International Energy Agency reported Friday that power generation from coal is up 9 percent this year, as utilities are look for ways to meet rising demand beyond natural gas and wind and solar power.

"The rebound is being driven by his year’s rapid economic recovery, which has pushed up electricity demand much faster than low-carbon supplies can keep up," the report read. "The steep rise in natural gas prices has also increased demand for coal power by making it more cost-competitive."

Scientists have warned the world needs to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the most devastating consequences of climate change.

But despite pledges by governments to tackle the problem, greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise - with no end in sight under current government policies. 

Increasing reliance on coal is only likely to exacerbate the problem, said said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.

“Coal is the single largest source of global carbon emissions, and this year’s historically high level of coal power generation is a worrying sign of how far off track the world is in its efforts to put emissions into decline towards net zero," he said.

In China, which produces more than half the world's coal-fired electricity, coal power is estimated to have grown 9 percent this year to reach an all time high. In India, another large coal user, coal-fired power grew 12 percent, also to an all time high.

In The United State and Europe coal-fired power grew 20 percent, though that still remains below 2019 levels and is expected to decline next year amid increasing wind and solar development, the IEA said.