As Western nations put more restrictions on coal power generation, China will continue to burn. Reuters’s Colleen Howe reports:
XIAMEN, China, March 8 (Reuters) – China’s coal imports are expected to be little changed or decline in 2024 despite an expected increase in overall demand for the polluting fuel, officials from industries, state-run utilities and traders said on Friday.
Tepid growth in shipments by the world’s top importer of the fuel could suppress global prices and worsen fears of oversupply, with Indonesia, the world’s top exporter of coal, expected to further boost exports from record levels.
Wu Wenbin, head of coal management at utility Guangdong Energy Group, told the China Coal Import International Summit in Xiamen that he expected China’s coal imports to range between 450 million and 500 million metric tons this year.
That compared with a 2023 record of 474.42 million tons, surprising analysts who had forecast imports of between 460 million and 470 million tons.
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