- China increases coal power despite global climate commitments
- Surge in coal capacity raises concerns about emission control
- International coal production rises, defying climate goals
China pledged to “strictly regulate” new coal power in 2021. It increased two years later, according to Global Energy Monitor, which fueled concerns about additional emissions at a time when they ought to be declining. According to GEM, the new capacity may not be utilised, and other nations must also increase their efforts.
A new analysis indicates that China increased its coal power capacity last year despite a pledge to “strictly control” the deadliest fossil fuel.
In 2023, the nation commissioned 47.4 Gigawatts (GW) of additional coal power, which is over twice the total quantity contributed by the international community.
It gives rise to apprehensions that advancements in renewable energy, including those made by China, are being undermined by the continued reliance on coal, which is the most detrimental energy source in terms of air pollution and climate change.
Simon Stiell, the climate chief of the United Nations, stated on Wednesday that species have “two years to save the world” to inspire world leaders to increase their climate action.
Analysts speculate that China might not utilise all of the capacity it has developed.
In addition to pledging to reduce coal usage by 2026, Beijing has stated that its policies are consistent with the Paris Agreement on climate change.
In the interim, international coal production increased beyond China for the first time since 2019, a development deemed “concerning” by the Global Energy Monitor (GEM).
Two years after countries pledged to “transition away” from coal at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, the global temperature has risen.
As stated by GEM, it might be a “blip.”
However, climate envoy for the Marshall Islands, Tina Stege, criticises support for fossil fuels as “unacceptable” given the islands’ struggle against rising sea levels.
It was deemed “worrying” by Professor Piers Forster, interim chair of the Climate Change Committee of the United Kingdom government.
Professor Forster stated that “without strong regulation and policies that prevent it from being used, 2023 will not be regarded as a passing fad, and future emission increases will be unavoidable,” despite the possibility that additional capacity will not be utilised.
Does China require additional coal energy?
Director of the GEM coal programme Flora Champenois remarked that China’s coal binge is “completely inconsistent” with a 2021 pledge by President Xi to “strictly control” new coal power.
It also jeopardises the Chinese Communist Party’s goal of phasing out 30GW of coal power by 2025, even though only 9GW have been retired in recent years.
Ms. Champenois stated that this coal boom, as evidenced by the number of new coal plants going online, permits being issued, construction commencing, and the absence of any indications of a slowdown or retirement, is inconsistent with the pledge to strictly regulate coal.
However, the establishment of new coal plants “does not necessarily imply that China will increase CO2 emissions by the same magnitude,” according to Qi Qin, a China analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and co-author of the report.
She explained that this is because China is “expanding its renewable power capacities at the same rate.”
China has recently constructed more solar power than the entire world combined, putting it five years ahead of schedule to achieve its clean energy goal by 2030.
The surge is fueled in part by fears of electricity shortages following the depletion of water supplies for China’s hydropower by a drought in 2022.
However, it already has more coal power than it requires, according to Ms. Qin. Furthermore, many provinces are constructing their coal plants because a rigid grid system makes it difficult for them to share power.
‘Unacceptable’ or ‘blip’?
GEM discovered that seven additional nations added new coal power in 2023.
Zimbabwe, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, South Korea, Bangladesh, and Pakistan were among them.
However, GEM also attributed a portion of the worldwide net increase in coal power to affluent nations delaying plant closures in 2022 due to the energy crisis.
Tina Stege, climate envoy for the Marshall Islands, stated, “We cannot afford blips.”
Since the beginning of the year, my nation has been beset by climate-related crises, including drought and inundation caused by king tides that have impacted communities across the islands, she explained.
She stated that coal power, which remains the leading source of emissions on a global scale, must be “phased out immediately” to prevent “catastrophic sea level rise and [save] lives and livelihoods.”
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The lack of progress towards reallocating the trillion-dollar subsidies currently allocated to the fossil fuel industry towards cleaner alternatives was deemed “unacceptable” by her.
A representative from the Chinese embassy in London stated that “in the shortest period of time ever in the world,” China will transition from peak emissions to carbon neutrality.
“Our climate policies and objectives are in complete alignment with the Paris Agreement’s long-term temperature target.”
Presently, China is home to nearly half of the globally deployed solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity, more than half of the world’s new energy vehicles that operate on Chinese highways, and a quarter of the expanded afforestation area worldwide.
Additionally, they stated that they were developing substantial new growth drivers in the areas of green transportation, green infrastructure, green energy, and green lifestyle.
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