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Asia ramps up use of dirty fuels to cover energy shortfall triggered by Iran war

The Guardian · 🇬🇧 public United Kingdom · · 799 words · By Rebecca Ratcliffe
Energy crisis climate_change
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What to know about Energy crisis

Governments across Asia are ramping up their use of coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, as they try to cover huge energy shortfalls triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran.

Claims checked 17
Techniques found 0
Topics 2

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Right coverage
Left20%
Center80%
Right0%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Governments across Asia are ramping up their use of coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, as they try to cover huge energy shortfalls triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran.

Why it matters

The move has triggered warnings from climate experts who point to coal’s devastating environmental impact, and say the energy crisis should be a wake up call for governments to invest in renewables, which can offer a more stable supply that is not exposed to…

Common ground

Across the region, from Bangladesh to South Korea, governments are trying to compensate for a drop off in imported energy, much of which comes from the Middle East.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/01/iran-energy-crisis-asia-dirty-fuel…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 17 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

help Insufficient Evidence 7
schedule Pending 7
verified Verified By Reference 3
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Claim 1: “Thailand, the government has increased output at the country’s largest coal-fired plant.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to verify Thailand's coal plant output changes.
help
Claim 2: “Almost 30bn cubic meters of LNG has been removed from global supply chains, of which more than 80% is missing in the Indo-Pacific region.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm 30bn cubic meters of LNG missing.
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Claim 3: “Governments across Asia are ramping up their use of coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, as they try to cover huge energy shortfalls triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to support claims about Asian coal usage linked to US-Israel war on Iran.
verified
Claim 4: “India, which relies on coal for nearly 75% of its power generation, has asked its coal plants to run at maximum capacity and avoid planned outages.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia entries about India's demographics and economy do not mention coal plant capacity or energy shortfalls.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — India is the most populous country in the world, comprising approximately one-sixth of the world population. According to the United Nations' World Population Dashboard, India's population reached sli…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_India
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The economy of India is a developing mixed economy with a notable public sector in strategic sectors. It is the world's fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP and the third-largest by purchasing power …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_India
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country since 2023; and, since its independence in 1947, the world's …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India
verified
Claim 5: “Bangladesh increased coal-fired power generation and coal-fired power imports in March.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia entries about Bangladesh's population and holidays do not address coal generation or imports in March 2024.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world and among the most densely populated with a population of ov…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladesh
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Genocide Remembrance Day (Bengali: গণহত্যা স্মরণ দিবস, romanized: Gôṇôhôtyā Smôrôṇ Dibôs) is a national day of remembrance in Bangladesh observed on 25 March in commemoration of the victims of the Ban…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide_Remembrance_Day_(Bang…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Independence Day, officially Independence and National Day, is celebrated on 26 March as a national holiday in Bangladesh. It commemorates the country's declaration of independence from Pakistan in th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence_Day_(Bangladesh)
schedule
Claim 6: “Gloystein added it will take years to recover LNG supplies.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
help
Claim 7: “Many countries in the region rely on LNG to generate electricity, as well as for industries such as fertiliser manufacturing.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm LNG usage for industrial processes in Asia.
verified
Claim 8: “Demand in Asia had been forecast to double in the next 25 years.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia entries about unrelated topics (AirAsia, Malini Fonseka, Tony Leung) do not address energy demand projections for Asia.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — AirAsia X Berhad (MYX: 5238), operating as AirAsia, is a Malaysian multinational low-cost airline headquartered near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Established in 1993 and commencing operations in 1996, the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AirAsia
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Wanniarachchige Malini Senehelatha Fonseka, (Sinhala: මාලිනී ෆොන්සේකා; Tamil: மாலினி பொன்சேகா; 30 April 1947 – 24 May 2025) was a Sri Lankan actress, theatre artist, director and politician. Often dub…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malini_Fonseka
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Tony Leung Chiu-wai (Chinese: 梁朝偉; Jyutping: Loeng4 Ciu4wai5, born 27 June 1962) is a Hong Kong actor and singer. He is one of Asia's most successful and internationally recognized actors. He has won …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Leung_Chiu-wai
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Claim 9: “Almost 30bn cubic meters of LNG has been removed from global supply chains, of which more than 80% is missing in the Indo-Pacific region, said Henning Gloystein, managing director of energy and resources at Eurasia Group.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
help
Claim 10: “Supplies have been cut off by the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz though which a fifth of worldwide LNG shipments pass.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm Hormuz closure impacting LNG supplies.
schedule
Claim 11: “Delhi has sped up clearances for commissioning of wind power plants and battery energy storage systems.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 12: “The global market has flipped within four weeks from quite a healthy supply surplus … into a very severe deficit – and that’s going to not just lead to price spikes, but real fuel shortages.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 13: “The Philippines and Sri Lanka introducing four-days weeks for many government staff, and Vietnam encouraging people work from home.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 14: “Those countries that have coal reserves will be [using] that because it’s the fastest, cheapest way to replace LNG.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
help
Claim 15: “Strikes on a major LNG export facility in Qatar will exacerbate the shortage and have a years-long impact on the industry, say experts.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to verify Qatar's LNG facility strikes affecting supply.
help
Claim 16: “South Korea said it will delay the shutdown of coal-fired power plants and has lifted caps on electricity from coal.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence found in cross-references, web search, or Wikipedia to confirm South Korea's coal policy changes.
schedule
Claim 17: “Bangladesh closed its universities early, bringing forward the Eid al-Fitr holidays, and has introduced more planned blackouts.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.