Malaysia's thermal coal imports fell on the year in May because of weaker demand for coal-fired generation.
- Malaysia imported 2.5mn t of thermal coal in May, down by 24pc on the year, according to Malaysian customs data. Imports in May almost halved from April.
- Indonesia remained the top supplier of coal to Malaysia, accounting for 79pc of imports in May. Malaysia received 1.97mn t of Indonesian coal in May, down by 17pc from a year earlier and falling by 40pc from April.
- Australian coal shipments to Malaysia reached 318,000t in May, falling by 51pc from 2025 and down by 62pc from April. Australia accounted for 13pc of Malaysian coal imports in May.
- Overall imports in January-May reached 13.8mn t, down by 7pc on the year.
- Coal-fired generation reached 7.17TWh in May, down from 7.29TWh recorded in the same period a year earlier, according to data from electricity planning authority Single Buyer. Coal accounted for 54.9pc of the country's generation mix in May, followed by gas at 41.1pc.
- Malaysian coal imports may continue to weaken in the near term, as coal-fired power output reached only 6.7TWh in June, down from 7.56TWh in June 2025. Coal's share in the generation mix in June was at 52.5pc, while the country's gas reliance rose to 42.8pc.
| Malaysia's thermal coal imports by origin | t | ||||
| May '26 | ± on-month (%) | ± on-year (%) | May '25 | Apr '26 | |
| Indonesia | 1,970,842 | -40.3 | -17.2 | 2,379,268 | 3,302,016 |
| Australia | 318,335 | -62 | -50.7 | 646,153 | 837,301 |
| Canada | 79,202 | 1.3 | 78,148 | ||
| Total | 2,497,556 | -49.3 | -23.6 | 3,268,429 | 4,924,206 |
| Source: GTT, Malaysian customs data | |||||
