Coal Remains The Undisputed King Of Global Power
World's Largest Electric Plane Flies for 27 Minutes on $5 of Power The world is installing wind turbines and solar panels faster than ever, but coal still generates more electricity than any other source, and by a huge margin.
TheInternational Energy Agency(IEA) expects coal-fired power plants to generate 10,974 terawatt-hours (TWh) in 2026, nearly one-third of the 33,313 TWh of electricity produced worldwide.
Natural gas is a distant second at 6,976 TWh, followed by hydropower at 4,536 TWh, solar at 3,289 TWh, wind at 2,898 TWh and nuclear at 2,871 TWh.
In other words, coal will generate nearly as much electricity this year as natural gas and hydropower combined.
It will produce 77% more power than wind and solar combined.
That creates an awkward moment for the global energy transition.
The IEA expects renewables collectively to overtake coal in 2026 for the first time.
But that requires adding hydropower, solar, wind, bioenergy, geothermal and other renewables together.
And this year, coal is getting another unexpected boost from the global gas market.
The IEA entered 2026 expecting coal-fired power generation to fall.
ItsElectricity Mid-Year Update 2025forecast global coal generation would decline 1.3% this year as renewable output surged and natural gas displaced coal in some markets.
But the ongoing U.S.-Iran war has prompted a change in the forecast.
| Product | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Brent Crude | $102.14/bbl | +0.34% |
| WTI Crude | $96.90/bbl | +0.21% |
| EN590 Diesel | $846/MT | +0.18% |
| Jet Fuel A-1 | $1090/MT | +0.55% |
| Mazut M100 | $450/MT | -0.15% |
| Bitumen 60/70 | $470/MT | +0.08% |
| Sulphur Gran 99.5% | $470/MT | -0.44% |
| Urea 46% Gran | $650/MT | +1.12% |
| NPK 16-16-16 | $460/MT | -0.28% |
| Nat Gas TTF | $15.42/MMBtu | +0.92% |
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