Medium-Term Coal Market Report 2013
The CSIS Energy and National Security Program hosted Keisuke Sadamori, Director for Energy Markets and Security at the International Energy Agency (IEA), to present the IEA's Medium-Term Coal Market Report. The report, part of the IEA's Medium-Term Reports series, provides IEA forecasts on coal markets for the coming five years as well as an in-depth analysis of recent developments in global coal demand, supply, and trade.
This third annual report shows that while coal continues to be a growing source of primary energy worldwide, its future is increasingly tied to developments in non-OECD countries, led by China. The current low prices for coal add a new challenge to the sector, which is facing uncertainty due to increasing environmental legislation and competition from other fuels, like US shale gas or European renewables. The report addresses significant questions including whether depressed prices for coal will boost the fuel's consumption; if other developing countries will follow in China's footsteps by increasingly relying on coal to fuel economic growth; and, above all, whether the strong growth of coal in China will continue between now and 2018. Jane Nakano, Fellow with the CSIS Energy and National Security Program, moderated.
