Global coal consumption is expected to reach the highest level in history in 2022 and will remain at a similar level in the coming years, despite global efforts to reduce dependence on the most polluting fossil fuel, according to a report published on Friday by the International Energy Agency (IEA), Reuters reports.

High gas prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and subsequent disruptions in supplies to Europe have led some countries to turn to cheaper coal. In addition, heat waves and drought also boosted electricity demand and reduced hydroelectricity production in some regions, while nuclear power production was at a low level, particularly in Europe, where France had to to shut down several reactors for maintenance.

Under these conditions, the IEA estimates that the use of coal worldwide would increase by 1.2% this year, surpassing the threshold of eight billion tons in a single year for the first time in history and above the previous record set in 2013, according to Agerpres.

Also, the International Energy Agency forecasts that coal use will remain at this record level until 2025, as declining use in advanced economies will be offset by strong demand from emerging Asian economies. The biggest increase in coal demand would be recorded in India, with an advance of 7%, followed by the European Union, an increase of 6%, and China, with an advance of 0.4%. This means that coal will continue to be the most important source of CO2 emissions in the global energy system.

“The world is close to a peak when it comes to fossil fuel use, and coal is set to be the first to decline, but we’re not there yet,” said Keisuke Sadamori, director of energy markets and security at the IEA.

Global coal-fired electricity generation capacity is also expected to rise to a record high of around 10.3 Terawatt-hours this year, while global coal production is also forecast to grow by 5.4% by to 8.3 billion tons, also a historic high.

This analysis “underlines the urgent need to significantly increase the production of energy from renewable sources as well as energy efficiency, so that we reduce people’s bills, ensure our energy supplies and keep the climate targets intact,” said Alexandru Mustață, campaigner at Europe Beyond Coal.