NEW DELHI: India will be the main engine of global coal demand growth through 2026, even as global consumption is estimated to top 8.5 billion tonne for the first time in 2023, the International Energy Agency said on Friday, days after the COP28 climate declaration called for driving out all fossil fuels.
The IEA coal market report and forecast 2023 projected India’s coal demand rising 8% this year and 3.5% annually thereafter to 1,397 million tonnes (mt) to say this will be a key driver of upward pressure on demand, although the global trend will be set in China.
India’s coal use will rise sharply is in spite of an expected trebling of solar power capacity by 2026, compared to 2021, and a target of raising the share of green power to 50% by 2030. Coal-fired generation currently accounts for about 70% of electricity flowing in the grid.
