Coal in Canada

Coal reserves in Canada rank 13th largest in the world (following the former Soviet Union, the United States, the People's Republic of China and Australia) at approximately 10 billion tons, 0.6% of the world total.The coal industry generated $12.2 billion in 2023. With 19 active coal mines across Canada, most of the coal comes from British Columbia (59%), Alberta (28%) and Saskatchewan (13%).

In 2005, Canada produced 67.3 million tons of coal and its consumption was 60 million tons. Of this 56 million tons were used for electricity generation. The remaining four million tons was used in the steel, concrete and other industries. The largest consumers of coal in Canada were Alberta and Ontario. In 1997, Alberta accounted for 47% of Canada's coal consumption at 26.2 million tons, and Ontario accounted for 25% at 13.8 million tons. Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick also use coal to generate electricity to varying degrees.

In 2016, The Government of Canada, with the support of all provinces except Manitoba and Saskatchewan, decided to phase out the use of coal-fired power plants by 2030 in order to meet its Paris climate agreement commitments as declared in the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change. The decision affected 50 communities dependent on a nearby coal mine or power plant for its economy, and 3,000 to 3,900 workers who worked in the 13 power stations and nine nearby mines that were still active in 2016 across Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. In November 2017, the Government of Canada co-founded the Powering Past Coal Alliance. Between 2000 and 2025, Canada reduced its coal power capacity by 83%.