Coal is the world's most abundant fossil fuel - more plentiful than oil and natural gas. It is second only to oil as a source of energy that we use. Coal is widely used because it's easily obtained, there's lots of it, it's well distributed throughout the world, and it has a high energy content. 

Coal has many important uses, but most significantly in electricity generation, steel and cement manufacture, and industrial process heating.

Coal provides over 23% of global primary energy needs. It generates around 39% of the world's electricity. Almost 70% of total global steel production is dependent on coal. 

There are four main types of coal and all are found in Canada: anthracite, bituminous, sub-bituminous, and lignite. 

There is more stored energy in Canadian coal than all the country's oil, natural gas, and oil sands combined.

Canada exports about 28 million tonnes of coal annually to more than 20 countries. 

Coal is our single largest export to Japan, our second largest trading partner.

Each year Canada produces enough coal to fill the Sky Dome in Toronto every week for an entire year.

The international trade in coal has expanded faster over the last decade than trade in any other commodity.

On a national basis, coal-fired plants are the most important sources of fossil-fuel generated electricity in Canada.

Coal is the major fuel source for electric power generation worldwide. More than half of total world coal production provides around 39% of the world's electricity.

Electricity generation from coal is now 8 times more efficient than at the turn of the last century. Coal is the single largest commodity carried by Canadian railways.

Canada ranks tenth in the world in total coal reserves with 4 billion tonnes of bituminous coal. That's coal covering a football field to a height of about 4,500 kilometers! 

Worldwide, more electricity is generated from coal than any other source.

Coal is also indispensible for iron and steel production. About 600 million tonnes of coal-equivalent to approximately 16% of total hard coal production, is currently utilized by the steel industry. 

Canadian coal is exported to 21 countries on five continents with an annual value of approximately $2 billion.