According to the agency, coal demand will grow at an average rate of 2.3% per year through 2018, compared with a 2012 forecast of 2.6% for the five years through 2017, and the actual growth rate of 3.4% per year between 2007 and 2012.
China will account for nearly 60% of new global demand over the next five years. Despite its moderated demand forecast, the report does not project peak coal in China within the next five years, and the nation’s consumption and production will remain comparable to that of the rest of the world combined.
