China is burning more coal in yet another sign that the first country hit by a coronavirus outbreak is returning to a level of normalcy. Daily coal burn at select coastal plants has doubled from early February, at the height of the country’s lockdown to stop the spread of Covid-19. The plants are responding to resurgent electricity demand as factories restart in the world’s second-largest economy.

China’s use of coal is usually cause for consternation. The country mines and burns about half the world’s supply of the dirtiest fossil fuel, and it’s the primary reason China leads the world in carbon emissions. In fact, China’s shutdown to slow the spread of the virus probably kept about 1.5 billion tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, at least temporarily.

Still, with Europe and the U.S. now in the grips of a similar lockdown and the global economy in tatters, signs that China is stirring back to life a little over two months since the outbreak are a beacon to the rest of the world.

“If the coal burn data can sustain above current levels and continues to rise, then it shows work resumption has normalized,” said Wang Miao, an analyst at Huatai Futures.