Countries across the globe are boosting energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, including the call for phasing out of coal for electricity generation. The transition is part of the global commitment in the framework of the Paris Agreement in reducing emission.

Based on International Energy Agency (IEA) data, after net additions of renewable capacity reached a new record of almost 200 GW in 2020, total capacity is expected to grow by around 218 GW in 2021, almost 10 percent more than 2020. On the other hand, coal remains cheapest primary energy sources and the demand projected to remain strong in the Asia Pacific region.

In 2021, global coal generation capacity is expected to reach as much as 2,140 GW, predominantly driven by 30 GW of new capacity expected in China. Meanwhile, the country has set an ambitious target to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.

Indonesia’s other main coal markets such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan have also planned for the future of energy transition to reduce their dependent on coal. Asian countries are likely to slow down the transition, as they are predominantly consumers of coal, which so far remains relatively more competitive than other energy sources.

The Indonesian government has insisted that coal will remain one of the main sources of energy with plans to boost domestic coal consumption among others through the development of downstream industry. Indonesia is currently the world’s largest thermal coal exporter by volume and revenue from coal export contribute significantly to the country’s economy.

In light of this global trend, CoalAsia Magazine jointly with Petromindo.com is to conduct series of Webinar that would explore the trend of energy transition in global, and Asia markets and assess the potential impacts on supply and demand of coal in global market. The webinar would also explore how Indonesian government and stakeholders of coal sector anticipate the trend. For coal miner’s perspective, the economic feasibility of the coal downstream project is a very important factor for the success of the energy transition.