Coal power staged a major resurgence in the June quarter, recording its first year-on-year growth in almost a decade amid a “drought” in wind power and increased demand, underscoring the disarray of the country’s transition to low-carbon energy.

Data compiled by UNSW senior research associate Dylan McConnell shows a 6.5 per cent increase in coal power generation across the National Electricity Market in the April-June period from a year earlier, wrecking the downward trend in emissions from the sector.