10 July 2019 (IEEFA Australia) – Australia will struggle to seek alternative markets for its thermal coal as a declining Japanese market increasingly turns towards cheaper renewable energy solutions, a new IEEFA report out today has found.

The report, Japanese Thermal Coal Consumption Approaching Long Term Decline: Australia’s Biggest Export Destination to Transition Away from Coal, examines the momentum away from thermal coal in Australia’s key export market.

The Age, 10th July 2019:  A Chinese renewable energy expert has warned Australia against investing in new coal mines because her country, one of Australia's biggest coal customers, is moving rapidly away from coal-based energy production.

Australian thermal coal prices have dropped this year as China officials officials slowed customs clearance.

Bochum, Germany: While the ink is still drying on the approval for Australia's new controversial coal mine, Germany is working to extinguish the coal industry entirely. Read the full article from The Age here

June 27, 2019. German social historian Professor Stefan Berger and Director of Global And European Affairs with German mining trade union IG BCE Michael Mersmann speak to AAP about the lessons Australia can learn from Germany's exit from coal mining. 

BHP is working on a plan to change the types of coal it produces in NSW  in response to the Chinese import curbs that shocked coal markets earlier this year.

China is the main buyer of export thermal coal from BHP's Mt Arthur mine in the Hunter Valley, but unofficial import restrictions on Australian coal shipments this year have prompted BHP to study ways to produce more of the coal specification demanded by Japanese customers.

The head of the international trade union movement has warned Australian unionists against putting coal jobs ahead of environmental concerns, as the CFMMEU pushes Adani for a commitment to long-term jobs at its controversial Queensland mine.

A new material capable of revolutionising energy storage systems is on the verge of being commercialised at the University of Newcastle. Read the article in Newcastle Herald here

If ever there was a moment in history that highlighted the tension between the promise of renewable energy and an entrenched reliance on the coal industry it is the Hunter Region in 2019. Read the article from Matt Kelly of the Newcastle Herald here 

If Australia is to move on from coal, how do we do it? An obvious gap in the Federal Election debates was a comprehensive plan for an industry, and employment, to replace coal in the regions.  Geraldine Doogue speaks with Chris Briggs, Research principal at the Institute for Sustainable Futures, at the University of Technology, Sydney and  Professor Frank Jotzo, Director of the Centre for Climate Economics and Policy, ANU Crawford School of Public Policy and director of the Australian-German Energy Transition Hub. Listen now

HUNTER Valley coal prices have slumped by a quarter in the past year as a number of Asian countries move to reduce their reliance on coal for electricity generation, a leading industry journal, the Australian Coal Report, has confirmed. Read more here