Coal powered China’s rapid growth and the growth of other developed countries. Now, seeing the trade-offs, India serves as a test case for the future of development. Will India go with coal? Or will it blaze a new trail for emerging economies to follow?
As the world’s current largest emitters switch off many of their coal-fired power plants, will coal supplies shift to poorer, emerging economies looking to grow using the same well-worn path? Or, in an age of increased awareness of coal’s trade-offs, will these countries choose to leave more and more of those coal resources in the ground? There is an immense opportunity for emerging economies to choose the latter—carving out a new, sustainable development pathway the world has yet to experience. And, India will be a key test case.