New Delhi, India

A report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday (December 16) that the world is consuming more coal than ever before. In 2022, global consumption is set to rise to an all-time high. 

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The report also stated that consumption will remain at similar levels in the next few years, and efforts from world economies are needed to mitigate the problem. 

In the annual coal report, the IEA said that the demand for coal is set to grow 1.2 per cent and top eight billion metric tons for the first time ever this year. 

The alarming report comes just a year after countries promised to move to a low-carbon level and also agreed to phase down their use of coal at the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow. 

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Some countries have started using coal, which was a cheaper alternative this year as gas and fuel prices after the Russia-Ukraine war. The war also caused disruptions to supply. 

As per the report, the largest increase in coal demand is expected to be in India at 7%, followed by the European Union at 6% and China at 0.4%. 

Keisuke Sadamori, the IEA’s director of energy markets and security, said: "The world is close to a peak in fossil fuel use, with coal set to be the first to decline, but we are not there yet." 

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In 2022, world leaders gathered at the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt to talk about proposals by business leaders, and negotiations by nearly 200 nations about the future of global action on climate change. 

Although, the final COP27 deal drew criticism from some quarters for not doing more to rein in climate-damaging emissions, both by setting more ambitious national targets and by scaling back the use of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. 

(With inputs from agencies)

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