Paris, France - Coal is back, pushing to break records with a 9% leap in use through 2021, and the filthy source of energy is on track to keep growing in the coming years – exactly the opposite of what the climate needs right now.

On Friday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released a new analysis on the state of coal, showing how increased appetite for the resource in China, India, and the US could break records this coming year, seriously undermining efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The news is like a lump of coal in our stockings, with demand on the way up and on track to increase to new record highs by the end of 2022.

The boost in coal use is a nasty surprise after the Covid-19 pandemic caused global coal demand to drop by 4.4%, which was a big decline, but still far smaller than what was expected when the pandemic began.

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The IEA explained the growing appetite for coal is connected to the increase in the price for natural gas, which is making the dirtiest fossil fuel more cost-effective.

"Coal is the single largest source of global carbon emissions, and this year’s historically high level of coal power generation is a worrying sign of how far off track the world is in its efforts to put emissions into decline towards net zero," said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.

"Without strong and immediate actions by governments to tackle coal emissions – in a way that is fair, affordable and secure for those affected – we will have little chance, if any at all, of limiting global warming to 1.5 °C."

This makes switching to renewable energies even more important, and alternative fuels such as green hydrogen are one place to start.