Coal makes big strides while natural gas notes record drop in 2009

World primary energy consumption, including oil, natural gas, coal, nuclear and hydropower – declined by 1.1 per cent in 2009 with consumption in OECD countries down five per cent, the largest decline on record, BP Plc (LSE: BP.L) said in its latest Statistical Review of World Energy.

At the same time, the use of natural gas fell by 2.1 per cent with demand declining in all regions apart from Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Russia noted a 6.1 per cent drop, leading the downturn with the OECD following at 3.1 per cent. “Natural gas in competitive markets fell sharply and remained weak through most of the year due to falling consumption, continued development of unconventional resources in the US and rising LNG supply,” said Tony Hayward, BP’s CEO. The trend in consumption impacted on global gas production, as it contracted for the first time on record.

Coal’s share of global energy consumption rose last year to 29 per cent, its highest level since 1970 but in absolute terms remained flat, particular in the OECD and the former Soviet Union countries as the global recession and competitively-priced natural gas prices hit. However, in other areas, consumption grew by 7.4 per cent although it must be noted that 95 per cent of this rise can be attributed to China.

In terms of other fuels, global nuclear output dropped by 1.3 per cent, while hydroelectricity generation expanded by 1.5 per cent. Continued government support contributed in pushing up world wind and solar generation capacity by 31 and 47 per cent respectively.