Coal, Lignite, And Anthracite Global Market Report 2021: COVID-19 Impact and Recovery to 2030

Major companies in the coal, lignite, and anthracite market include Coal India Limited; ShenHua Group; BHP Billiton Ltd; China Coal Energy Co Ltd and Anglo American plc.

The global coal, lignite, and anthracite market is expected to grow from $1028.32 billion in 2020 to $1151.8 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12%. The growth is mainly due to the companies rearranging their operations and recovering from the COVID-19 impact, which had earlier led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of commercial activities that resulted in operational challenges. The market is expected to reach $1438.49 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 6%.

The coal, lignite, and anthracite market consists of sales of coal, lignite, and anthracite by entities (organizations, sole traders and partnerships) that mine bituminous, anthracite, and lignite coal by underground mining, strip mining, culm bank mining, and other surface mining techniques. It also includes the development of coal mine sites, and improvement of coal, including cleaning, washing, screening, and sizing of coal. The coal, lignite, and anthracite market is segmented into coal; lignite and anthracite.

Asia Pacific was the largest region in the global coal, lignite, and anthracite market, accounting for 80% of the market in 2020. North America was the second largest region accounting for 7% of the global coal, lignite, and anthracite market. South America was the smallest region in the global coal, lignite, and anthracite market.

Coal mining companies are using 3D mine visualizers to obtain a real-time digital model of a mine. A 3D mine visualizer generates a three-dimensional model of the mine layout and transfers it directly to the operator. With a web-based interface, information about the model is available with any connected device. It offers full record and playback capabilities in 3D thus allowing operators to review and analyze historical data in order to improve productivity and identify best practices. 3D mine visualizers significantly enhance the productivity of large mining environments. It is a valuable tool in operations planning, analyzing problematic areas and tracking mine development over time. Companies such as Sandvik and Komatsu are offering 3D visualizer systems.

Negative environmental impacts of coal will push coal end users to shift to alternative sources going forward. Coal-fired power plants are the largest individual sources of climate pollution. They are globally responsible for more than 70% of CO2 emissions in the power generation industry; this is expected to restrain the growth of coal mines. Coal burning also leads to death of about 3.5 million people annually from air pollution. According to the IMF, global coal's combined external costs and damages to health, land, water and nature are estimated at about EUR 3 trillion ($3.3 trillion) annually, which is equivalent to 4% of global GDP. The environmental impacts of coal will act as a restraint on the coal, lignite, and anthracite mining market.

The increasing share of coal in power generation in some countries is expected to drive the coal market. About 20 countries are turning to coal for power generation, including nine in Africa (Democratic Republic Congo, Egypt, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambic, Niger, Senegal and Tanzania), three in Central America (Dominican Republic, Panama, and Salvador), two in the Middle East (the UAE and Jordan) and three in Asia (Bangladesh, Cambodia and Myanmar). By 2025, more than 65 coal-fired power plants could be commissioned in these countries, representing a capacity of 50 GW. Significant increases in coal use are also expected in Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia. Countries such as China, India and Indonesia, where electricity is produced primarily from coal, will significantly reduce the share of coal in their power mix, but not below 35%, due to the abundance of domestic coal reserves and their economic attractiveness. The continued demand for coal in power generation globally and increasing share of coal in power generation in some countries will drive the coal market going forward.