How does India rank for coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions?

India ranks 1st out of 220 countries with data for 2022.

Is coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions rising or falling in India?

Over the last ten years it is up 32.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this India data come from?

The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India

Name: Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India
Creator: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

India: Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions was 11.28 million tonnes in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)

11.28 million tonnes

Change on year

up 4.5%

World rank

1st

of 220 countries

All-time high

11.28 million tonnes

in 2022

All-time low

34,814 tonnes

in 1750

Years of data

273

1750–2022

Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India, 1750–2022

Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.

Analysis

In 2022, coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India stood at 11.28 million tonnes. That is the highest value across all 273 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.5% on the previous year and up 32.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India peaked at 11.28 million tonnes in 2022 and was at its lowest, 34,814 tonnes, in 1750.

India ranks 1st of 220 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1750s	35,094 tonnes	34,814 tonnes	35,374 tonnes	10
1760s	35,717 tonnes	35,436 tonnes	35,998 tonnes	10
1770s	36,343 tonnes	36,061 tonnes	36,624 tonnes	10
1780s	36,968 tonnes	36,686 tonnes	37,249 tonnes	10
1790s	37,593 tonnes	37,312 tonnes	37,873 tonnes	10
1800s	38,215 tonnes	37,935 tonnes	38,494 tonnes	10
1810s	38,833 tonnes	38,556 tonnes	39,109 tonnes	10
1820s	39,578 tonnes	39,170 tonnes	39,984 tonnes	10
1830s	40,834 tonnes	40,073 tonnes	41,592 tonnes	10
1840s	42,541 tonnes	41,759 tonnes	43,321 tonnes	10
1850s	45,748 tonnes	43,523 tonnes	52,547 tonnes	10
1860s	51,551 tonnes	47,972 tonnes	54,299 tonnes	10
1870s	54,830 tonnes	50,958 tonnes	69,233 tonnes	10
1880s	79,564 tonnes	70,411 tonnes	95,823 tonnes	10
1890s	127,101 tonnes	105,317 tonnes	158,065 tonnes	10
1900s	278,391 tonnes	175,802 tonnes	386,651 tonnes	10
1910s	443,523 tonnes	372,219 tonnes	546,530 tonnes	10
1920s	415,422 tonnes	378,669 tonnes	461,531 tonnes	10
1930s	362,573 tonnes	326,945 tonnes	399,452 tonnes	10
1940s	433,506 tonnes	401,726 tonnes	480,431 tonnes	10
1950s	541,979 tonnes	459,924 tonnes	663,794 tonnes	10
1960s	945,813 tonnes	712,191 tonnes	1.18 million tonnes	10
1970s	1.46 million tonnes	1.22 million tonnes	1.71 million tonnes	10
1980s	2.35 million tonnes	1.82 million tonnes	3.00 million tonnes	10
1990s	3.71 million tonnes	2.98 million tonnes	4.50 million tonnes	10
2000s	5.86 million tonnes	4.51 million tonnes	7.58 million tonnes	10
2010s	9.54 million tonnes	7.96 million tonnes	10.89 million tonnes	10
2020s	10.58 million tonnes	9.65 million tonnes	11.28 million tonnes	3

Countries ranked near India

2 China 10.38 million tonnes compare
3 Russia 5.25 million tonnes compare
4 Indonesia 3.82 million tonnes compare

See the full ranking of 220 places →

More energy & mining data for India

Fuel imports 31.5% (2024)
Ores and metals imports 6.9% (2024)
Ores and metals exports 3.7% (2024)
Gas production 311.65 terawatt-hours (2025)
Fossil fuel production per person, by fuel 212.9 kilowatt-hours per person (2025)
Fossil fuel production by fuel 311.65 terawatt-hours (2025)
Gas production per person 212.9 kilowatt-hours per person (2025)
Fuel exports 17.1% (2024)
Electric power transmission and distribution losses 14.2% (2023)
Share of dietary energy supply from carbohydrates vs. GDP per capita 66.7% (2023)

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India?: Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions in India was 11.28 million tonnes in 2022, according to Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions recorded in India?: The highest recorded value was 11.28 million tonnes in 2022.
What is the lowest coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions recorded in India?: The lowest recorded value was 34,814 tonnes in 1750.
How does India rank for coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions?: India ranks 1st out of 220 countries with data for 2022.
Is coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions rising or falling in India?: Over the last ten years it is up 32.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this India data come from?: The figures come from Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 273 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Coal consumption and sulphur dioxide emissions
Unit: tonnes
Source: Hoesly et al. (2024) - Community Emissions Data System (CEDS) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 220 places, 60,060 data points, 1750–2022
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Sulfur dioxide (SO₂) is an air pollutant formed from the burning of fuels that contain sulfur, such as coal. SO₂ is one of the main chemicals that forms acid rain.