The COP21 Paris Agreement raises important questions for coal, said Dr Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA). Dr Birol was in Singapore on 18 December for the global launch of the IEA’s Medium-Term Coal Market Report 2015, hosted by the Energy Market Authority.
Dr Birol said that he had chosen Singapore as the IEA’s new hub for the global release of its reports, in line with the IEA’s new vision of “modernising the IEA and opening the doors to emerging countries, in particular Asia”.
One of the key findings of the report was that global coal demand growth halted in 2014, after more than ten years of relentless growth, and will decline for the first time in 2015. Dr Birol also shared that coal prices are at an all-time low given the glut of supply on the market and the fall in demand in China, reflecting the restructuring of China’s economy and the increase in the share of hydropower, wind, solar and nuclear in its power generation.
India has taken over as the largest coal importer in the world, and Southeast Asia is also expected to drive future coal demand to fuel its economic growth and energy access. However, air pollution is a key factor that countries need to consider with regard to their coal-related policies. As such, Dr Birol called for a move towards higher efficiency coal-fired power plants and greater efforts in carbon capture and storage technologies. In addition, stronger regulations are needed to address the impact of emissions from inefficient coal-fired plants.
Coal will remain a key part of global energy mix through to 2020, but faces challenges due to shifts in policies post-COP21 and concerns over pollution.
To view Dr Birol’s presentation slides, please click here.
To view photos, please click HERE.
By : EMA