Coal powered the Industrial Revolution, transforming societies and raising living standards from the endemic poverty that was humanity’s lot since time immemorial. Its energy density and reliability made it the backbone of progress, first in the West, then globally, long before oil and gas rose to prominence. Despite decades of climate alarmism calling for 'King Coal' to be consigned to the ash-heap of history, so to speak, it remains vital, especially in developing nations. It is the backbone of cheap and reliable electricity in populous Asian countries like China, India, Indonesia and Vietnam. In any credible scenario, the importance of coal to the economic growth aspirations of developing countries is not going to appreciably change over the next couple of decades.
Energy analyst David Blackmon remarks in his popular Substack Energy Transition Absurdities:
China and India are building coal plants like it’s 2015 all over again, approving nearly 110 gigawatts (GW) of new coal-fired capacity in 2024 — China with a whopping 94.5 GW and India at 15 GW. That’s the most in a decade, and it’s a loud reminder that energy security trumps climate alarm narratives every time.
China depends on coal for over 60% of its power needs and approved two new plants every week in 2024. The Economic Times celebrated India’s new record of producing over one billion tonnes of coal in the 2023-24 fiscal year, “demonstrating its dedication to energy security and self-reliance”. India relies on coal for nearly three quarters of
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Stop futzing about with grossly expensive nuclear and build coal-fired stations. Quicker, cheaper, more cost efficient.
Coal is a cheaper way to produce electricity. But you would think Nuclear would keep all parties happy. Planet savers and non planet savers alike. But it doesn’t keep the planet savers happy because although it has no CO2 emissions, they often still argue against it. Which makes you think that it isn’t the CO2 emissions that they are really concerned about. It is the reliable affordable energy. Because that is the driver of Industrial Capitalism, and environmentalism , particularly to do with the climate is anti capitalist, and infact that is what the whole thing is really about, with climate change used as the excuse for the anti capitalist policies.
Coal may be King, but in some republican parts of the world (like France) Uranium-235 is a major alternative leader. Look at the EDF statistics.
France does not have much coal reserves and it is not of high quality. It was expensive to mine so they took the decision to go for mass nuclear which these days is making them a lot of money propping up countries like the UK and Germany who have idiots running their grids.
This would be a better article without the repeated claim that there’s something particularly European about political choices the US democrats have basically forced onto their European ‘allies’ aka satellite states.
To illustrate this with an example of a completely different domain: Angela Merkel used to be critical of multiculturalism in the past. In 2015, she suddenly threw the German borders open, acting against the German fundamental law in the process, to welcome loads of so-called Syrian refugees¹. This was just at the time when civil war in Syria started in earnest and the Obama administration was backing the forces seeking to oust Assad. I obviously don’t have a proof for this but I think Merkel had this Damascene conversion because she was ordered to.
¹ Hundredthousands of these have meanwhile granted German citizenship to shield them from calls that they should really return to the country the supposedly fled from and now go on holiday to.
Why are Wealthy Western Governments getting rid of coal? (Except Trump ofcourse)—–They will tell you it is because we must act to reduce emissions of CO2 to halt global warming and climate change. The real reason though has NOHING to do with the climate. The climate is simply the plausible excuse used to con an unsuspecting public into accepting what it is really about. —–The UN Sustainable Development Agenda. This is about control of the worlds wealth and resources and it insists that the wealthy west has used up more than its fair share of coal oil and gas to become prosperous and must STOP—–ECO SOCIALISM—–Tragically for the west our own politicians are fully on board with this scam.—-All except Trump.
Excellent comment – spot on.
The West is really a cold war term dating back to the times when there was a western and an eastern military pact in Europe. I think it’s time to retire that, especially as it’s so obviously assymmetric.
As Hans Georg Maßen, former head of the German BfV recently put it: The only two countries in the world where an inland secret service specifically tasked with protecting the state from opposition parties and the general population exists are Germany and Austria. In both cases, this secret service is a legacy of the post-1945 military occupation government by the ‘real west’, Britain, France and the USA, and its erstwhile communist allies in Russia.
Your away barking up a different tree. ——If you don’t like the term “west” or “prosperous west”, or “western governments”, then just change it for “wealthy nations”. ——–Whatever words you choose to use makes no difference to my point of view which still have not agreed or disagreed with. ——You are not ofcourse obliged to agree or disagree. You are free to bark up that different tree if you want.
The West is a cold war term and it used to refer to the European NATO members westward of the Iron Curtain and their transatlantic allies (USA and Canada). As such it’s really outdated and it suggests a homogenity which doesn’t exist.
“Western values” in the USA mean “freedom of speech”. But in Germany, it means OAPs privately discussing if they’d prefer living in a monarchy, more so, if one of the OAPs is a even descendent from a former princely house of the German empire (Reuß), go to jail as far right terrorists.
I think the term should be retired.
In the context of your text, what the UN calls developed nations seems to be the most appropriate replacement.
Everyone can have their opinions, even at the DS, but ‘developed nations’ is such a Nowhere definition.
I’m sure many Middle Eastern nations think they are more developed than the US or Europe, in the matters that are most important.
Lets not trouble ourselves with minor details while the political class robs us blind and steals our prosperity under the guise of saving us from a climate apocalypse
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFHHOBiUrkg
Thanks for sending that link. —–I have been investigating this stuff for a very long time and am well aware of the technocrats agenda to control all the worlds wealth and resources and us. —–You might also check out GB originals for videos by Bev Turner and Neil Oliver etc. —You might also look at “Digital ID : Digital Dystopia” by H C Williams.———– “Social Credit Nightmare on your Street” by Vernon Coleman.——– “The War on Common Sense” by Conrad Riker.
Great article. I seem to recall that Britain has at least 200 years of coal reserves. I have never agreed with the theory that C02 emissions are the primary driver of global climate; however, even if the theory is true, I have never understood why we didn’t just continue to use fossil fuels for most of our electricity generation and migrate to a greater reliance on nuclear and hydro-electricity (and even some solar, tidal and wind) over the medium to long term.
The insane Net Zero targets of Mad Ed make no rational sense to me – so I can only conclude that their intention is to destroy the UK economy and cause the widespread impoverishment of its people.
Your conclusion is correct. Miliband is a Marxist. His aim is to detroy free capital markets and imoverish the population.
You only have to observe the wolfish smirk on his face as he tells us how it is going to be. There must be a lampost somewhere that he could adorn?
Coal Powers Economic Freedom
Which is why we are denied it.
Exactly—–The climate is the bogus excuse for denying it.