The World Coal Association has rebranded itself as “FutureCoal: The Global Alliance for Sustainable Coal,” Chief Executive Officer Michelle Manook said at a press conference in Delhi.
“For too long our global coal value chain has allowed anti-coal sentiment to dominate and fragment us,” Manook said in a statement. That’s “resulted in a lowering of the global coal IQ,” which the group defines as an understanding of coal’s contribution to society.
Coal is the biggest contributor to planet-warming emissions globally. To limit global warming to 1.5C, coal use should fall by more than 70% by 2050, according to estimates by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
BloombergYet the fossil fuel has made a comeback. Last year’s energy crisis showed Europe’s shift away from coal was far from irreversible, and global coal demand is expected to remain at all-time highs again this year, according to the International Energy Agency.
“FutureCoal may seem bold to some but for many it is simply representative of the reality we are confronted with,” Manook said, arguing that coal will be needed in any energy transition.
The rebrand comes a week before the United Nations-sponsored Conference of the Parties, or COP, the world’s biggest annual climate event. Negotiators from different countries, environmental activists and fossil fuel lobbyists are set to gather in Dubai over green issues.
