carbone-fuligine

In 1996 it was estimated that the world’s reserves of coal economically accessible with mining techniques known today amount to about 15 billion tons, half of which is anthracite. The energy contained in the world’s coal well exceeds 10 trillion yottajoules. With the current rate of consumption, it is estimated that the reserves will last just under 300 years. The United States Department of Energy estimates national reserves at 1,081,279 million tons, corresponding to approximately 4,786 BBOE (barrels of oil equivalent). The amount of coal burned in 2001 amounted to 2.337 GTOE (gigaton of oil equivalent), corresponding to 46 MBOED (million barrels of oil equivalent per day). With this trend, the reserves will last 285 years. By comparison, during 2001, natural gas provided 51 MBOED, and oil 76 MBD (million barrels per day). The country with the largest consumption of coal is China, whose oil production and consumption has been growing steadily since 2000. In 2012, China extracted 46% of world coal production and consumed 49% of world production, largely part to produce electricity necessary for its economic development.