Guizhou mining accident - 18 dead
Bloomberg
Zhou Xin
China Tightens Rules on Reopening Coal Mines After Accidents
Bloomberg
Liza Lin
Coal market to face dropping quality, rising costs
Reuters
By Henning Gloystein and John McGarrity
Some investment analysts argue that this "golden age" of coal may be coming to an end, as large coal fields discovered in the last two decades, such as in Indonesia or Colombia, were easy to develop and the most economical reserves of the fossil fuel are fast being depleted, leading to a drop in the quality of what remains.
"High-quality and cheap coal supply is under serious threat ... (and) we believe the 'golden age' of coal will end sooner than expected," Axa Investment Managers said in a report.
Energy research and consultancy Wood Mackenzie says the quality of coal from Indonesia, the world's biggest exporter, is already low and will deteriorate further.
Coal demand to soar in short term, but longer outlook dim
Mining Weekly - Edited by Reuters
Global coal demand will soar in the short term as emerging markets rely on it to power economic expansion, but its declining quality and rising environmental awareness will dent demand in the longer term, Axa Investment Managers said....But coal has a competitive edge over fuels such as natural gas only as long as pollution control regulations are light, Axa said, adding that environmental awareness was rising fast in emerging markets. "For the next round of rapidly growing economies, the incentive bias towards coal will be shorter-lived than expected [and] stricter pollution controls may render many new coal-burning installations obsolete," the study said.
The War on Coal Is Being Won in the U.S., but the Real Battle Is Overseas
Time Science Blog
Bryan Walsh