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 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.
Demand for coal in 2024: 2.1 million tonnes. This is a 52% reduction from 4.7 million tonnes in 2023, and is mostly due to a 55% fall in coal-fired generation to 655,000 tonnes in 2024, with the closure of Ratcliffe coal power station. There has been a fairly consistent year-on-year decline of around 2 million tonnes of coal since 2022 (when demand stood at 6 million tonnes).
In 2024, the UK iron and steel industry used 594,000 tonnes of coal. This is a significant decline from 1.6 million tonnes of coal used by the iron and steel industry in 2023. The sharp decline is likely 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 27% of total UK coal demand in 2024 – up from 14% in 2015. This is mostly because coal for power generation has fallen even further over the same time period.
In 2024, the UK imported 1.76 million tonnes of coal, with net imports forming 32% of the UK’s coal supply for the year. This follows a trend of almost halving year-on-year imports from 3.48 million tonnes of coal imported into the UK in 2023, and 6.35 million tonnes in 2022.
The UK exported 1.08 million tonnes of coal in 2024. This was a 48% jump from 731,000 tonnes of coal exported from the UK in 2023, and 5,900,000 tonnes in 2022. Although there is a concerning trend of increasing exports of coal, the extent of this increase is due to Ratcliffe power station selling off surplus stocks with its closure in October 2024.
Across 2024, coal accounted for 0.9% of electricity generation in the UK. This compares to 1.8% in 2023 (2.7% in 2022). The 2024 average is so low because coal power generation remained at zero by October 2024 with the closure of the UK's last coal-fired power station. Coal power accounted for 42-43% of electricity generation in the UK in 2012.
The amount of coal kept stock in warehouses and in depots around the UK reduced by 854,000 tonnes in 2024. Stocks have been in general decline since 2014.
In 2024, heating homes in the UK used 41,000 tonnes of coal. The average home uses 1-2 tonnes of coal per year, so it is assumed that around 30,000 homes were heated with coal in 2024 (compared to 210,000 tonnes of coal in 2023, equivalent to around 160,000 homes).
In 2024, 395,000 tonnes of coal were converted into 'mineral products, 50,000 into chemicals, and a further 9,000 tonnes of coal was used in mechanical engineering.
WORLDWIDE
Significant emissions resulting from coal combustion include:
The Global Energy Monitor estimates 7.2 billion tonnes of coal are mined each year, from 3,670 recorded coal mines across 70 countries. Coal mining worldwide emits around 52 million tonnes of methane per year.... read more
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