Coal use globally
Burning coal emits more CO2 than any other fuel source for the amount of energy it produces. Burning coal also pollutes our air with many other hazardous gasses, including nitrogen oxide, mercury, and sulphur dioxide – with global and local consequences for climate change, the natural environment, and our own health.
Globally, the amount of coal we burn each year is still increasing, with no end in sight. Coal contributed most to the growth in CO2 since the pandemic (2019), accounting for around 70% of the growth in CO2 in 2023. Despite the Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement, and many COPs, coal continues to plague hopes of limiting climate change to 1.5c.
Coal is primarily burned to generate electricity in large power plants, but it is also used to generate heat directly by burning it in the fireplaces of homes. Where this domestic use of coal occurs, it’s a significant source of fine particulate matter air pollution within the home. Because of the small particulate size, the “toxins may enter the bloodstream and be transported around the body, lodging in the heart, brain and other organs”.
Coal in global industries
Coal is not only burned to produce electricity. It is used to manufacture steel, cement, chemicals, bricks, and other products.Most significant of these consumers are steelworks. The coal used to produce 1 tonne of steel emits approximately 2 tonnes of CO2. Coal used in making steel is responsible for 11% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and it’s increasing. Evidence indicates carbon capture and storage will never be able to deliver the CO2 savings hoped for despite time and huge investment in research and testing. However, methods of making steel without coal offer better hopes of decarbonisation. More investment and political commitment is needed to accelerate and scale up these methods see Coal in Steel. Check out our resource on industrial uses of coal and the alternatives.
Coal use in the UK
Demand for coal in 2025 was 948 thousand tonnes. This is a 56% reduction from 2.1 million tonnes in 2024 (4.7 million tonnes in 2023), and is mostly due to the closure of the UK’s last coal-fired power station (Ratcliffe-on-Soar), and the closure of Port Talbot TATA steelworks, leaving one remaining steelworks using coal-dependent blast furnaces. 2025 marks a 98% decrease in coal demand over just 3 years, from 6 million in 2022.
Heating homes
In 2025, heating homes in the UK used 16,000 tonnes of coal. The average home uses 1-2 tonnes of coal per year, so it is assumed that around 10,600 homes were heated with coal in 2024. This continues a trend of rapid decline, with 41,000 tonnes in 2024 and 210,000 tonnes in 2023; equivalent to around 160,000 homes, a 93% reduction in homes heated with coal between 2023 and 2025).
Coal for electricity
For the first year ever, coal accounted for 0% of electricity generation in the UK (0.9% in 2024, 1.8% in 2023, 2.7% in 2022, and 42-43% in 2012). This is due to the closure of Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station in October 2024, the UK’s last coal-fired power station.
Iron and steel coal use
In 2025, the UK iron and steel industry used 207,000 tonnes of coal, down 65% on 2024 when demand was at 594,000 tonnes of coal – and just 4% of what was used by the iron and steel industry in 2015. The sharp decline is due to the closure and transformation of Port Talbot steelworks part-way through 2024. Despite this decline, coal for the iron and steel industry was 22% of total UK coal demand in 2025 – down 5% on 2024 (27%).
Cement coal use
In 2025, 378,000 tonnes of coal (compared to 395,000 in 2024) were converted into ‘mineral products’ which is mainly cement manufacture, where coal is still the primary fuel burned to produce the 1450c heat required. This slight year-on-year decline may mean the cement sector is approaching a plateau in its coal dependence, unless action is taken to improve its decarbonisation trajectory.
Chemicals coal use
Unlike the cement sector, the chemical sector’s coal use has halved from 50,000 tonnes of coal in 2024 to just 25,000 tonnes in 2025.
Coal imports
In 2025, UK coal imports appeared to plateau at 1.65 million tonnes of coal, slightly down from 1.76 million tonnes in 2024. This follows a period of significant year-on-year declining imports since 2022 when the UK imported 6.35 million tonnes.
Coal exports
The UK exported 590,000 tonnes of coal, a 45% decline since 2024 (1.08 million tonnes). However, 2024 was an anomaly as Ratcliffe power station sold its surplus stocks following its closure in that year, producing an unusually high export volume. Yet, even compared to 2023 (731,000), 2025 marks a modest decline in exports of coal, and – similar to UK imports – may signify a plateauing.
Coal stockpiles
The amount of coal kept as stockpiles in warehouses, depots, and at coal ports around the UK reduced to just 200,000 tonnes in 2025 from 1.4 million tonnes in 2024. This was largely due to the closure of Ratcliffe power station and Port Talbot TATA steelworks. Stocks have been in general decline since 2014.