Still digging 2025

The briefing reports that while new coal mine capacity additions declined by 46% in 2024, approximately 2,270 Mtpa of new capacity remains under development globally. This pipeline is heavily concentrated in China, India, Australia, and Russia, which together account for nearly 90% of proposed developments. The document highlights that if fully realized, these projects could emit 15.7 million tonnes of methane annually, significantly hindering the achievement of the Paris Agreement and IEA Net Zero scenarios. It emphasizes the prevalence of 'greenfield' projects and the high methane intensity of underground and metallurgical coal mines.

• In 2024, the addition of new coal mine production capacity fell to 105 Mtpa, a 46% decrease from 193 Mtpa in 2023, marking the smallest increase in a decade.
• There are over 850 new mine plans, expansions, and extensions worldwide totaling 2,270 Mtpa of proposed capacity. China dominates this pipeline with 1,350 Mtpa, which is more than all other countries combined.
• Proposed coal developments are predominantly 'greenfield' projects (1,696 Mtpa), which lock in longer-term emissions and carry a higher risk of becoming stranded assets compared to 'brownfield' projects.
• If all proposed projects are developed, they could emit 15.7 million tonnes of methane annually, equivalent to 1.3 billion tonnes of CO2e (20-year GWP), surpassing Japan's total annual greenhouse gas emissions from 2022.
• Underground mines are significantly more methane-intensive, accounting for half of proposed capacity (1,153 Mtpa) but nearly 80% of projected methane emissions (13 Mt/yr).
• The current pipeline of coal development is inconsistent with the IEA Net Zero Emissions (NZE) scenario, which calls for no new coal mines or mine extensions.
• In India, state-owned enterprises manage 72% (238 Mtpa) of proposed capacity, with Coal India as the leading player. The government targets 1.5 billion tonnes of production by 2030.
• Russia aims to increase annual coal production to over 600 Mt by 2050 and secure a quarter of the global coal market by increasing exports to 350 Mt by 2050.

APA

Mei, D., Means, T., & Feng, W. (2025). Still digging 2025. Global Energy Monitor. https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-coal-mines-briefing-July-2025_3.pdf

Chicago

Mei, Dorothy, Tiffany Means, and Wynn Feng. Still digging 2025. Global Energy Monitor, 2025. https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-coal-mines-briefing-July-2025_3.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Mei |first1=Dorothy |last2=Means |first2=Tiffany |last3=Feng |first3=Wynn |title=Still digging 2025 |publisher=Global Energy Monitor |date=July 2025 |url=https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-coal-mines-briefing-July-2025_3.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mei2025still, author = {Mei, Dorothy and Means, Tiffany and Feng, Wynn}, title = {{Still digging 2025}}, institution = {Global Energy Monitor}, year = {2025}, month = jul, url = {https://globalenergymonitor.org/sites/default/files/migration/reports/GEM-coal-mines-briefing-July-2025_3.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }