Demand for coal has decreased by more than 4 percent since 2014 and is projected to keep falling, according to a new report.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) released its annual report on coal and said although coal usage has increased in India and other Asian nations, those figures were offset by decreased demand in China, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
Key findings in the data released by the IEA:
- Globally, demand fell by 4.2 percent from 2014 to 2016.
- Demand for coal in the United Kingdom fell by more than 50 percent from 2015 to 2016.
- In the global energy mix, coal's share is expected to plummet from 27 percent in 2016 to 26 percent in 2022.
- India and other countries in Asia — southeast Asia in particular — are expected to see gains in coal usage over the next five years.
- Egypt has put its plans to incorporate coal power on hold, while the United Arab Emirates is slated to open what will be the first large coal power plant in the Middle East in the coming years.
At a climate change conference last month, the Trump administration argued fossil fuels should still be part of the global energy system — albeit as clean as possible.
"Without a question, fossil fuels will continue to be used," George David Banks of the National Economic Council said. "We would argue that it's in the global interest to make sure that, when fossil fuels are used, it as clean and efficient as possible."
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