"Coal demand is approaching an all-time high as economies rebound from the early lockdowns of the coronavirus pandemic, a trend that endangers international promises to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the International Energy Agency said today in a report.
Worldwide levels of coal-fired electricity are “surging” toward an annual record this year, and global coal demand may be “set to reach an all-time high next year,” the energy forecaster asserted. In addition, while the pandemic was expected to drive down the use of coal-fired power, the decline that happened turned out to be far more muted than initial expectations, according to the report.
Coal demand, including uses beyond the power sector, is expected to grow by 6 percent this year. That means it could reach new all-time highs in 2022 and remain at that level for the following two years, according to the report.
What’s happening in coal is part of a larger trend of countries supporting net-zero carbon emissions as a policy goal but falling far when it comes to actually reining in greenhouse gases, according to the report."
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