The International Energy Agency (IEA) announced that global coal consumption was set to reach an all-time high in 2024, which would be the warmest year on record.
Despite calls to stop or at least limit the burning of fossil fuels, the energy watchdog expects global coal demand to reach record levels for the third consecutive year. Greenhouse gases that are causing the planet to warm would need to be drastically reduced to limit global warming and avoid catastrophic climate impacts, scientists warned.
The IEA report, called Coal 2024, predicts the world will reach peak coal consumption in 2027, surpassing 8.77 billion tonnes this year. However, the outcome depends on China, which has consumed 30 per cent more coal than the rest of the world combined over the past quarter century, according to the IEA.
Climate target failure
Although Beijing sought to diversify its electricity sources, including a major expansion of solar and wind power, the IEA said China’s coal demand would still reach a record 4.9 billion tonnes in 2024. Growing coal demand in China, as well as in emerging economies, such as India and Indonesia, made up for continued declines in advanced economies.
However, this decline slowed both in the European Union and the United States. Coal use there is set to fall by 12% and 5% respectively, down from 23% and 17% in 2023. Many scientists are also concerned that US President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House will undermine Washington’s climate commitments.
The 2024 report refutes last year’s IEA prediction that coal use would start to decline after peaking in 2023. At the annual UN climate change forum in Dubai last year, countries pledged to divest from fossil fuels. However, experts cautioned that failure to double down on the landmark pledge at COP29 in Azerbaijan would jeopardise efforts to combat climate change.
The International Energy Agency, established after the 1973 oil crisis, positions itself as “the world’s leading energy authority.”
