The Growing Electricity Demand to Augment the Coal Fired Power Generation Market Growth

 

Coal fired power generation is a coal power plant or coal fired power station that burns coal to generate electricity. Fluidized bed combustion, coal cyclone furnace, pulverized coal firing, and gasification are some of the technologies used in the generation of electricity. Coal fired power stations produce one-third of the world's electricity, but air pollution is the main cause of hundreds of early deaths every year. The coal is burned in a pulverized coal-fired boiler. The heat of the furnace converts the boiler water into steam, which is then used to spin the turbines that turn on the generator. Thus the chemical energy stored in coal is gradually converted into thermal energy, then into mechanical energy, and finally into electrical energy.

 

The increasing demand for electricity worldwide is the primary factor driving the growth of the coal fired power generation market. This is attributed to the growing urbanization, rising industrialization, and the increasing population. The need for energy in end-use industries is also expected to aid the market growth. Thus, the growing electricity demand is expected to augment the coal fired power generation market. However, according to the International Energy Agency, global electricity demand is expected to fall by 5% in 2020 due to the global financial crisis. Moreover, the widespread proliferation of COVID-19 and a second wave in autumn in advanced economies may cause an even greater decline.

The market is expected to witness robust growth due to increased production and distribution of coal worldwide. Coal is produced in many countries such as the United States, India, China, Australia, Russia, South Africa, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Columbia, Germany, Canada, Ukraine, Vietnam, and the United Kingdom. Coal India Limited (CIL) and its subsidiaries accounted for 606.89 million tons during 2018-19, a growth of 6.9% from 567.36 million tons in 2017-18. Moreover, fluidized bed combustion and coal gasification (technologies used in the generation of electricity) are witnessing huge demand due to their lower emission standards.

Such technologies are expected to witness a substantial growth due to stringent regulations imposed by the governments. In terms of geography, the coal fired power generation market is divided into six regions, such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, South America, Middle East, and Africa. Moreover, the number of coal fired power generation plants is increasing worldwide, driving the market growth. For instance, in February 2020, Japan planned to build around 22 new coal power plants at 17 different sites in the next five years.