The International Energy Agency (IEA) declared that the world has passed "peak coal", even as global power demand is set to soar during the "Age of Electricity".

A new IEA report, Electricity 2026, published on February 6, forecasts that electricity demand will increase at an average rate of 3.6% annually through the rest of the decade, driven by rising consumption from industry, electric vehicles, air conditioning, and data centers.

Electricity demand grew by 3% in 2025 and 4.4% in 2024, with extreme heat waves and strong industrial activity cited as key factors.

"Amid significant uncertainty in energy markets, one certainty is that global electricity demand is growing much more strongly than it did over the past decade," said Keisuke Sadamori, IEA director of Energy Markets and Security. "In this Age of Electricity, the increase in global power consumption through 2030 will be equivalent to adding more than two European Unions."

Emerging economies will continue to lead the charge, accounting for nearly 80% of the additional electricity consumption through 2030. However, advanced economies are also seeing a resurgence in demand, after 15 years of stagnation.

As renewable energy sources and nuclear power take center stage in this transformation, the IEA projects that by 2030, half of the world's electricity will come from renewables and nuclear, with total renewable generation overtaking coal.

The report showed coal's trajectory in recent years: while investment in China and India fueled its growth, the overall trend suggests coal reached its peak in 2024. Solar, wind, and gas are expected to drive most new generation, with nuclear contributing a smaller portion.

The IEA forecasts renewable generation to grow by 9% in 2025, slightly down from the 9.6% increase in 2024 but still significantly above the 6.4% average of the past decade. By 2030, renewable energy output is expected to increase by around 1,000 TWh annually, with solar PV alone accounting for 600 TWh.

Coal generation is expected to remain flat in 2025, after a 1.4% increase in 2024, with declines in China and India offset by growth in the U.S., Eurasia, and other Asian markets.

However, the IEA predicts that coal-fired power will continue to decline by 0.9% annually through the rest of the decade, although it will remain the largest single source of electricity through 2030.

The plateauing of coal use in China, which accounts for more than half of global coal-fired generation, is driving this decline. In India, while renewable energy adoption is pushing coal down, the IEA forecasts that coal use will rise again in the coming years. The report also highlights that coal will continue to decline in the European Union and the United States through 2030.

Despite these trends, the IEA sees the decline in India's coal-fired output as temporary, with a resurgence projected over the next five years.