From 1975 to 2025, IEA Coal Research provided independent information and analysis to a global audience on all aspects of coal – its production, markets, transport, utilisation and environmental impacts. The Centre’s approximately 500 studies provide a legacy of technical, policy-relevant and independent information on how carbon-based energy sources such as coal and biomass, can be sustainable sources of clean energy, compatible with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The emphasis of the research evolved with the changing times and from the 1980s onwards there was a focus on how to reduce emissions from using coal and lower other environmental impacts. Methods include incorporating air pollution control technologies, improving efficiency, cofiring with other fuels such as biomass or ammonia, and adding carbon capture, utilisation and storage to power stations and to hard to abate industrial processes to minimise their climate impact.
Coal remains an important fuel for power generation and will do so for decades, particularly in Asia. Worldwide, coal is also a critical input for steel, cement and aluminium production, materials that are essential for economic development and the clean energy transition.
In addition, alternative uses for coal are being developed – as a feedstock for the chemical sector, and as a source of rare earth elements and other critical minerals for example. The by-products from coal combustion also have a value, such as fly ash in cement. On a policy level, the Centre made important contributions towards the development of many national and international regulations, policies and strategies intended to make energy production cleaner and more sustainable, while emphasising that there is ‘no one size fits all’ solution to such global issues. Although IEA Coal Research closed in 2025, its work remains relevant as the role for coal evolves and extends into the future.