n reached 4.71 billion tons, a year-on-year increase of 3.4%; China's coal imports reached 474 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 61.8%. Both coal production  and imports hit a new all-time high, ranking first in the world. The capacity for securing the basic coal supply continued to strengthen, providing reliable support for  China's and even the world's economic and social development. At present, as the core technological support for the high-quality development of the coal industry,  the intelligentization of coal mines is a new stage of comprehensive mechanization and informatization development of coal mines, a new direction for the revolution  of coal productivity and production mode, and the "fourth important technology change". It is of great immediate significance to rely on the location advantage of  Shanghai as an international metropolis and the global market trade foundation to hold the 2026 World Coal Science and Technology Innovation Conference and  Global Coal Industry Expo, lead China's coal mining equipment to go out of China and go global, promote the safe, intelligent, green, and efficient development of  global coal mines, and propel the high-quality development of the global coal industry.

In order to fully implement the new energy security strategy featuring “Four Reforms and One Cooperation”, we must keep in mind General Secretary Xi Jinping’s  earnest remarks concerning “delivering solid progress in coal industry development”, deepen supply-side structural reform, strengthen the role of scientific and  technological innovation, accelerate global green and low-carbon transformation of coal, build a global modern coal industry system, and provide a strong energy  guarantee for the construction of Chinese modernization. The 2026 World Coal Science and Technology Innovation Conference and Global Coal Industry Expo (hereinafter referred to as the “Conference”) is scheduled to be held from March 7 to 9, 2026 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center (Pudong). The Conference will be  hosted by the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy, collaborated by the competent authorities of coal producing countries around the world, and  jointly organized the Energy Industry Research Institute of China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy, and Shixin International Exhibition Group Co., Ltd.;  and it will invite strategic assistance from China’s top 100 coal industry enterprises and China’s top 50 coal machinery industry enterprises.