India Burns More Coal as Heatwaves and Iran War Tighten Energy Supply
CNBC reported Monday that India coal power generation rose sharply in April as a brutal nationwide heatwave collided with energy supply disruptions linked to the ongoing Iran conflict. The combination has made cleaner alternatives economically unviable, cementing coal’s grip on the country’s grid.
Coal Output Climbs as Temperatures Shatter Records
India generated an average of 164.9 gigawatts from coal-fired plants in April. That compares with 160.7 gigawatts during the same month last year, according to S&P Global Energy data cited by CNBC. Month-on-month, output climbed roughly 3.5%. The surge comes as temperatures across dozens of Indian cities exceeded 40-45 degrees Celsius. An air-quality monitoring platform found that all 50 of the world’s hottest cities in late April were located in India.
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The LNG Problem Making Coal the Only Option
About 4% of India’s installed generation capacity runs on liquefied natural gas. Roughly 60% of that LNG travels through the Strait of Hormuz. The Iran war has squeezed those flows and lifted import costs. Girish Madan, director of corporate ratings at Fitch Ratings, told CNBC that elevated LNG prices have rendered gas-fired generation economically unworkable. Coal must therefore absorb a disproportionate share of peak-season demand, he said. S&P Global’s lead Asia-Pacific power researcher Andre Lambine noted that gas output in late April was still running 1.5 gigawatts below 2025 levels, reflecting coal’s continued displacement of gas. If an El Niño pattern develops, Lambine warned, India’s coal-fired output could rise as much as 10% year-on-year.
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Background: Renewables Growing, But Coal Still Dominates
India crossed a milestone earlier this year when non-fossil fuel sources surpassed 52% of total installed generation capacity. Solar, wind, and hydropower have driven that expansion. Yet coal-fired plants still account for nearly 43% of total capacity and supply more than 70% of actual electricity generated. The gap between installed capacity and real-world output reflects coal’s reliability advantage over intermittent renewables. Industrial pressure is also adding to coal demand. Firat Ergene, lead coal analyst at Kpler, told CNBC that Middle East supply disruptions have pushed petroleum coke prices higher. Cement producers are substituting petcoke with coal as a result, creating an additional demand channel beyond the power sector.
India’s Climate Commitments Face a Stress Test
New Delhi pledged last month to cut its economy’s emissions intensity by 47% before 2035. The country targets net-zero by 2070. India remains the world’s third-largest CO2 emitter after China and the United States, though the growth rate of its emissions hit a two-decade low last year. The government has warned that above-normal temperatures are likely to persist through May, raising the prospect of further coal demand records before monsoon season arrives.
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