The World’s Top 5 Coal Exporting Countries

The global coal sector has been undergoing continuous change in recent years due to ongoing factors such as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, economic growth, political change, and energy demand around the world. According to the IEA, both coal supply and demand will reach record highs in 2022, with demand reaching a level of 8 billion tons. Additionally, demand is expected to remain the same in 2024. Changes in fuel prices and futures market curves are also some of the factors driving this market trend. According to Expert Market Research, the global coal mining market will grow at an annual growth rate of 2.6%, from $648.04 billion in 2023 to $795.76 billion in 2032. It is expected. Despite the recent shift to renewable energy, demand for coal is expected to continue and drive the market.

Check out the world’s 5 largest coal exporters.

5. South Africa

Exports: 83,102,000 short tons

South Africa accounts for his 3% of world coal production. The largest producers are Australia, China, India and Indonesia. Coal exports from South Africa increased by 11% in 2022 compared to 2021, with India accounting for the majority of these exports. Additionally, coal exports from South Africa are projected to grow at an average annual rate of 0.67% from 2022 to 2026.

Interestingly, according to Mining Technology, the country has 108 coal mines, of which the Grootegeluk mine is the largest with an annual production capacity of 30.4 million tons. His second largest mine in South Africa, the Newvaal mine, has a production capacity of 13.68 million tonnes per year, demonstrating the country’s coal wealth.

4. United States

Exports: 85,955 thousand short tons

Coal exports from the United States remained largely unchanged in 2021 and 2022, with exports reaching 85.1 million short tons and 84.8 million short tons in both years. Or according to EIA. In 2022, 45% of all U.S. coal exports were thermal coal and 55% were metallurgical coal.

In terms of export destinations for this amount of coal, the largest importer of U.S. coal is India, which imported 15.5 million short tons in 2022. The Netherlands, Brazil, Japan and South Korea were also the countries that imported the most in the same year.

3. Russia

Exports: 242,607 thousand short tons

In 2022, against the backdrop of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Russian coal shipments fell from 210.7 million tons the previous year. According to TASS, production will end the year at 438 million tons, a decrease of 1.26%, but exports in 2023 reached 213 million tons.

According to the country’s prime minister, coal exports to China and India have surged, with exports to both countries increasing by 52% and 43%, respectively, year-on-year. There are 174 mines in the country, and the two largest mines, the Borodinsky mine and the Sobolevskoe mine, will have production of 19.37 million tons per year and 15.75 million tons per year in 2023, respectively. Mining technology.

2. Australia

Exports: 401,298 thousand short tonnes

Australia’s main energy source is coal, with 74,147 million tonnes of recoverable hard coal in 2020, according to Geoscience Australia. There are 74,039 million tons of lignite.

Australia has her third largest coal reserves in the world, accounting for her 14% of the world’s coal reserves, behind Russia and the United States, which account for 24% and 15%, respectively. According to Mining Technology, the country’s coal reserves in 2018 were 147 billion tons. According to Power Technology, the company is the fourth largest coal producer, and since 2014 it has consistently reached the level of 500 million tons. Australia became by far the world’s second largest coal exporter in 2022, accounting for a whopping 35% of global coal exports by value.

1. Indonesia

Exports: 516,740 thousand short tons

Number 1 on the list is Indonesia. Coal exports from Indonesia to India alone reached almost $10.6 billion in 2022. In the same year, Indonesia exported a staggering amount of coal worth an estimated total of $46.76 billion.

According to MINERBA One Data (MODI) released on January 19, Indonesia’s coal production will reach a record high of 775.2 million tons in 2023, surpassing the government’s previous target of 694 million tons. exceeded. This is due to the increasing global demand for sea coal.