Coal demand stalls for the first time since the 90’s: Report
Coal demand slacking thanks to China’s expansion of renewable energy sources
Global coal demand has stalled due in part to a decline in coal-intensive industries like steel and cement in China.
STOCKHOLM _ The International Energy Agency says global demand for coal, the biggest source of man-made carbon emissions, stalled last year for the first time since the 1990s.
In Friday’s report, the Paris-based IEA cited declining appetite for coal in China, the world’s biggest coal consumer.
China is expanding renewable sources of electricity such as hydro, wind and solar power. It has also seen a decline in coal-intensive industries like steel and cement.
The IEA projected that the share of coal in power generation worldwide would drop from the current 41 per cent to 37 per cent by 2020, though coal demand is projected to rise in India and Southeast Asia.
IEA chief Fatih Birol said environmental policies including last week’s climate agreement in Paris “will likely continue to constrain global coal demand.”
The Canadian Press
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