The world won't be able to release its grip on coal anytime soon.
"Nothing can destroy coal," U.S. President Donald Trump said at the recent World Economic Forum. "Not the weather, not a bomb."
U.S. exports of coal have been rising steadily to satisfy growing global demand for the world's dirtiest fossil fuel, even though its domestic consumption has decreased.
On top of that, the world's coal capacity reached a new record high of nearly 2,175 gigawatts in 2024, data from Global Energy Monitor showed on Feb. 6. Coal capacity is the overall power output that can be generated from coal-fired power plants.
"The global shift away from coal remains challenging, largely driven by rising demand in Asia, even as Europe and the U.S. see significant declines in coal consumption," said Dorothy Mei, project manager for Global Energy Monitor's Global Coal Mine Tracker.
Global coal demand is also expected to have breached another fresh record high of 8.77 billion tonnes in 2024, and will remain at similar levels until 2027, the International Energy Agency predicted.
As recently as last December, India extended its directive for imported coal-based power plants to run at full capacity until Feb. 28.
But that's not to say that India has been neglecting its renewable energy targets. The country has set an ambitious goal of fulfilling 50% of its electricity needs through renewable energy by 2030. And it has made progress. And as of last October, renewables account for more than 46.3% of the country's electricity generation capacity, according to India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
Beyond China and India
Outside of India and China, other top countries building new coal plants are Bangladesh, Indonesia and Vietnam, Global Energy Monitor noted.
Vietnam is expected to have surpassed Taiwan as the world's fifth largest importer of coal, after the country's coal imports reached a record high in more than a decade last year.
Indonesia's coal production rose to around 831 million tons to notch a fresh high last year, data from the country's Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources showed.
CNBC