Coal Industry's Steady Gains in Output, Green Transition, and ESG Performance

On August 8, the 2025 Coal Industry Corporate Social Responsibility Report Conference was held at the Beijing Conference Center, where the China National Coal Association released the Coal Industry Social Responsibility Blue Book (2025) and highlighted outstanding practice cases. This annual event, held for 13 consecutive years since 2012, aims to showcase CSR achievements and promote green, high-quality development. This year, 64 coal companies issued CSR reports.

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Key Data and Development
In 2024, China’s raw coal output reached 4.78 billion tonnes. Key coal enterprises held 68 million tonnes in stock, while coal-fired power plants held 230 million tonnes. A total of 83 coal mines with annual production exceeding 10 million tonnes were completed, bringing total capacity to 1.36 billion tonnes/year, enhancing supply security.

Technological and Green Progress
The “Digital Coal” initiative advanced rapidly, with 1,993 intelligent mining faces and 2,232 intelligent tunneling faces established nationwide, pushing intelligent capacity to over 60% of total. Major coal enterprises achieved a raw coal washing rate of 68.0%, with mine water and gangue utilization rates of 74.1% and 74.2%, respectively. Comprehensive energy consumption dropped to 7.9 kg of standard coal per tonne, and power consumption to 23.7 kWh per tonne.

Innovation and Safety Investment
China Energy Investment Corporation increased R&D investment by 15% year-on-year, securing over 26,000 patents. China National Coal Group invested more than RMB 6 billion in safety measures, while the performance rate for long-term thermal coal contracts reached 101%.

ESG Development and Disclosure
45.45% of listed coal companies have established clear, efficient ESG governance systems. By the end of May 2025, ESG report disclosure reached 79.55%, up nearly 22 percentage points from last year, with central state-owned enterprises achieving a 90% disclosure rate. ESG ratings improved, with AA-rated companies rising from 2.9% to 4.55%, A-rated from 2.9% to 6.82%, and BBB-rated from 11.8% to 38.64%.



Conclusion
Overall, China’s coal industry continues to make steady progress in safety, green transition, intelligent operations, and ESG governance, with notable gains in automation and resource efficiency. However, there is still room to enhance ESG performance through stronger management, more comprehensive issue coverage, and brand building to support high-quality, sustainable development.