It was Mark Twain who famously sent a cable to the press in the US after his obituary had been mistakenly published, stating reports of his death had been greatly exaggerated.

Today, the mode of communication is likely via email, and coal could be the correspondent. Despite frequent predictions of its decline, coal continues to endure.

The unique properties of this most critical of minerals ensure that demand for coal continues, both thermal and coking coal. This places Australian coal producers in a unique position, with our near neighbours across Asia driving demand for coal, especially Australia’s key markets Japan, South Korea, India,Vietnam, and China.

And demand shows no sign of slowing down, based on recent updates from the International Energy Agency (IEA),which shows global coal demand grew by 1.2 per cent in 2024 to an all-time high of 8.77 billion tonnes. Overall, global demand for coal is steadily increasing.

In 2021, global coal consumption increased by 7.7 per cent. In2022, it rose by 4.7 per cent, and in 2023, it grew by 2.4 per cent. Does that sound like a commodity on life support?

For the activists, these figures represent ‘an inconvenient truth’. While there are forces in Australia who would happily cease all coal production tomorrow, the reality is that global demand would not be stunted. Australia would deal itself out of billions of dollars’ worth of prosperity, as that demand went elsewhere.

Anyone who thinks we would be ‘saving the planet’ by ending coal production in Australia is delusional – global demand is not being driven by supply from Australia.

It’s being driven by demand in emerging markets like India,Indonesia, and Vietnam. Those developing nations are using coal to provide affordable and reliable energy for their people – that is precisely what we have done in Australia for more than 100 years, as we have become an advanced economy.

What gives us the right to turn around and say, ‘Well coal was good enough for us back then, but we are denying you access to the same commodity to build your economy’?

In an era of increased calls for foreign aid, surely there is no better way to assist developing nations than empowering them to generate secure, affordable base load power.

Keep in mind too, that more than 60 per cent of our national electricity market still relies on coal, particularly during peak periods when weather-dependent forms of generation cannot match the demand.

But as much as facts and figures can do the talking, the sector continues to come under heavy pressure – if the industry won’t stand up for our coal mining communities, no one else will.

We cannot expect politicians to do the heavy lifting for us – they will react to community sentiment and respond accordingly. It is the task of industry bodies to create and build on positive sentiment for their members.

Coal Australia has been established to highlight the ongoing importance of coal, to drive the sector’s social licence, and to help restore and build pride in our coal mining communities.

We represent coal producers in the country, operating across New South Wales, Queensland, and Western Australia. Most notably, Coal Australia is a grassroots organisation, standing up for coal mining communities across the nation.

The coal sector has a compelling narrative, as it brings tangible prosperity, serving as the largest export earner for Queensland and New South Wales.

But that is not enough – the story must be told; repeatedly. Just as Coke and Nike spend countless amounts on advertising and promotion, the work of Coal Australia on this front is only warming up.

Part of that work is highlighting issues that affect the sector with state and federal governments – and nowhere is this more pressing than on the royalties front in Queensland.

Mines have already closed, while others have not proceeded, at a cost of thousands of jobs. Most recently, the Burton mine complex faces an uncertain future as it reels under the weight of the most punitive coal. mining royalty regime anywhere in the world.

The previous Queensland Labor government has bequeathed this unwelcome legacy to the people of the Sunshine State. Ordinarily, when a bad government is tossed out of office, you hope that is the end of the damage it has caused.

But not this time – Labor’s politically inspired coal cash grab continues to create pain across the sector.Coal Australia believes as many as a third of operators across Queensland are losing money due to a combination of lower coal prices, rapidly rising production costs, and unsustainable levels of royalties.

This cannot continue – these are not ‘coal barons’. In many instances, they are smaller operators, mining one deposit, with an asset that would otherwise be sterilised as a revenue and jobs creator for Queensland.

The new Queensland government has been refreshingly supportive when it comes to mining approvals, but investment decisions are hamstrung by an unsustainable royalty regime.

It is worth remembering that we all have skin in the game– many Australian superannuation funds hold shares in some of those companies that are listed.

Your retirement savings could be crimped by unsustainable royalties, especially as the super funds wake up to the fact that ESG issues and coal mining are not mutually exclusive. ESG is fundamentally about how companies manage their impact on the environment, how they treat workers and the communities in which they live, and their governance.

Multiple government agencies and community groups have a say on each coal project during approval, and proponents must meet strict standards concerning noise dust, water and air monitoring, and emissions, to name just a few.

Those strict conditions must be satisfied at the state and federal levels, and in perpetuity in real-time once operational, highlighting the ESG credentials of the coal sector.

The activists will no doubt scoff – they are not going away. Thankfully, nor is Coal Australia.