Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Without international agreements to limit greenhouse gas emissions, a new energy report sees world coal consumption taking off, rising from 139 quadrillion Btu in 2008 to 209 quadrillion Btu in 2035.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration released its International Energy Outlook 2011 on Monday.
While OECD countries, like the U.S., Canada, Australia and Japan, show a flat to declining consumption in coal, the non-OECD countries, namely China and India, show the demand for coal-powered energy exploding.
Strong economic growth and large domestic coal reserves in China and India lead to a substantial increase in their coal use for electric power and industrial processes. Installed coal-fired generating capacity in China nearly doubles in the Reference case from 2008 to 2035, and coal use in China’s industrial sector grows by 67 percent.
The development of China’s electric power and industrial sectors will require not only large-scale infrastructure investments but also substantial investment in both coal mining and coal transportation infrastructure. In India, coal-fired generating capacity rises from 99 gigawatts in 2008 to 172 gigawatts in 2035, a 72-percent increase, while industrial sector coal use grows by 94 percent.
Image from International Energy Outlook 2011
