Coal’s unexpected comeback: Middle East conflict drives a return to coal power Paolo AgnolucciNikita Makarenko June 17, 2026 This page in: English Français Español 中文

https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/opendata/coal-s-unexpected-comeback--middle-east-conflict-drives-a-return This blog post is part of a special series based on the April 2026 Commodity Markets Outlook, a flagship report published by the World Bank. This series features concise summaries of commodity-specific sections extracted from the report. Australian thermal coal prices reached $150/mt in early June, fueled by supply disruptions in China, export uncertainty in Indonesia, and rising summer electricity demand, before retreating sharply after the announcement of an end to military operations in the Middle East. Earlier in March, prices jumped about 20 percent (m/m), as the outbreak of conflict in the Middle East and the disruption of natural gas shipments pushed power generators toward coal. Prices stayed elevated through April and May as conflict in the Middle East persisted.