China possibly saw its coal consumption peak in 2013, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The seismic shifts underway in China have global implications for both coal use and emissions. Global coal use fell by 0.9% in 2014, the first fall this century, says the IEA’s Medium Term Coal Market Report 2015 . It says demand is “likely” to fall again in 2015, echoing reports that global emissions will fall this year as coal use declines. As a result, the IEA’s 2020 demand coal forecast is now 10% lower than its previous outlook . Even so, it sees rising demand between now and 2020, reversing the current two-year decline. Paris perspective Before getting into the details of the IEA’s coal market report, it’s worth noting that it was written before the Paris climate deal was agreed . Anticipating that an agreement might be reached, however, the report lays […]