Coal energy plant. INQUIRER STOCK PHOTO
Paris, France — World coal use is ready to achieve an all-time excessive in 2024, the Worldwide Power Company stated Wednesday, in a 12 months all however sure to be the most well liked in recorded historical past.
Regardless of calls to halt humanity’s burning of the filthiest fossil gasoline driving local weather change, the power watchdog expects world demand for coal to hit document highs for the third 12 months in a row.
Scientists have warned that planet-warming greenhouse gases must be drastically slashed to restrict world heating to keep away from catastrophic impacts on the Earth and humanity.
READ: Philippines’ dependency on coal not low cost—energy exec
Earlier in December, the European Union’s local weather monitor Copernicus stated 2024 was “successfully sure” to be the most well liked on document — eclipsing the document set simply final 12 months.
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Revealed on Wednesday, the IEA’s “Coal 2024” report does nonetheless predict the world will hit peak coal in 2027 after topping 8.77 billion tonnes this 12 months.
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However that will be depending on China, which for the previous quarter-century has consumed 30 p.c extra coal than the remainder of the world’s international locations mixed, the IEA stated.
China’s waxing demand for electrical energy was essentially the most important driving power behind the rise, with greater than a 3rd of coal burnt worldwide carbonised within the nation’s energy crops.
File Chinese language demand
Although Beijing has sought to diversify its electrical energy sources, together with an enormous growth of photo voltaic and wind energy, the IEA stated Chinese language coal demand in 2024 will nonetheless hit 4.9 billion tonnes — itself one other document.
Growing coal demand in China, in addition to in rising economies reminiscent of India and Indonesia, made up for a continued decline in superior economies.
Nevertheless that decline has slowed within the European Union and america. Coal use there may be set to say no by 12 and 5 p.c respectively, in contrast with 23 and 17 p.c in 2023.
With the approaching return to the White Home of Donald Trump — who has repeatedly referred to as local weather change a “hoax” — many scientists concern {that a} second Trump presidency would water down the local weather commitments of the world’s largest financial system.
Coal mining additionally hit unprecedented ranges by topping 9 billion tonnes in output for the primary time, the IEA stated, with high producers China, India and Indonesia all posting new manufacturing information.
The power watchdog warned that the explosion in power-hungry knowledge centres powering the emergence of synthetic intelligence was likewise more likely to drive demand for energy technology up, with that pattern underpinning electrical energy demand in coal-guzzling China.
The 2024 report reverses the IEA’s prediction final 12 months that coal use would start declining after peaking in 2023.
On the annual UN local weather change discussion board in Dubai final 12 months, nations vowed to transition away from fossil fuels.
However its follow-up this 12 months led to acrimony, with specialists warning that the failure to double down on that landmark pledge at COP29 in Azerbaijan risked jeopardising efforts to struggle local weather change.
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Arrange within the wake of the 1973 oil disaster, the IEA types itself as “the world’s main power authority”.
