India's 2025 Coalmine Proposals Lift Planned Global Supply by 2.5 Billion Tonnes as Openings Fall 40%
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Aug 13
India's 2025 Coalmine Proposals Lift Planned Global Supply by 2.5 Billion Tonnes as Openings Fall 40%
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Aug 13
Summary
India drove enough new coalmine proposals in 2025 to add 2.5 billion tonnes of annual global supply, up 11% from a year earlier, according to Global Energy Monitor.
Jharkhand and Odisha accounted for nearly all of that rise, doubling proposals as India targets 1.15 billion tonnes of coal output in 2025-26—almost 100 million tonnes more—to meet power demand and worsening heatwaves.
113 million tonnes of annual capacity actually began operating worldwide last year, down 40% from 2024, as new mine startups in China and Australia fell 44% and 96% respectively.
The divergence comes as coal demand is expected to plateau by decade-end and wind and solar overtook coal in global electricity generation last year, underscoring warnings that new mines risk outlasting their economic case.