MOSCOW, October 10. /TASS/. The global community continues considering coal to be a reliable energy source, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said in the article for the Energy Policy magazine.

"The global community, despite political slogans, continues considering coal as a reliable and affordable source of energy; complete abandonment of it can result and already results in unpredictable consequences for the global economy," Novak said.

Alternative energy sector growth rates are going down at present, which is related to economic causes and relatively low reliability of such energy sources that largely depend on unstable weather conditions, the Deputy Prime Minister added.