India's Emissions Rise as Global Coal Use Hits Record

The Global Carbon Project projects that India's carbon dioxide emissions will increase by 1.4% in 2025, contributing to a worldwide rise in fossil‑fuel emissions of about 1.1% to a record 38.1 billion tonnes. At the same time, the Statistical Review of World Energy shows global coal consumption reached a new high of 166.0 exajoules in 2025, up 0.7% from the previous year, even though coal‑generated electricity fell 0.3% to 10,511 TWh.

Coal's growth is concentrated in Asia‑Pacific, which accounted for 83.2% of total use. China alone consumed 55.6% of global coal, while India supplied 13.9%, together representing nearly 70% of worldwide consumption. Renewable energy expanded by almost 10% in 2025, narrowing coal’s share of the energy mix from 27.9% to 27.7%. The divergent trends highlight that absolute growth in coal can coexist with declining market share as overall energy demand rises and cleaner sources expand.