China Coal Wrecks Havoc on Climate Goals

China is building new coal power so fast that energy transition by the West is meaningless. Even if the US went completely off coal tomorrow, its plants would be more than replaced. (1)

There are a total of 3,092 operating coal plant units in China. As of January 2023 the province of Shandong, which lies to the south of Beijing, houses the greatest number of coal power plants, at over 400 units.

The construction of 106 gigawatts of coal fired power was approved last year--four times more than in 2021

China permitted more coal power plants last year than any time in the last seven years. The country quadrupled the amount of new coal power approvals in 2022 compared to 2021. All this despite the fact that much of the world is getting off coal. ⁽²⁾

Already permitted coal power projects set China up for a 23% increase in coal fired power capacity by 2027. If projects that are currently in the preparation stage but not yet permitted get a green light, the increase could reach 33% by2029.

The construction of 106 gigawatts of coal fired power was approved last year--four times more than in 2021 and the highest amount since 2015. This is eqivalent to about a hundred large coal fired plants and enough to supply the whole of Britain. ⁽³⁾

China burns more coal every year than the rest of the world combined.

When China is concerned about grid reliability, it starts building more coal power plamts, not more solar and wind farms, to boost supply. In late 2022, the Chinese government permitted about 2 new coal plants a week. ⁽⁴⁾

While China continues to see its demand for coal increase

While China continues to see its demand for coal increase, leaders in countries such as the US and UK continue to impose restrictions on its citizens and push going green to reach net zero emissions across the globe.

In the US, the Biden Administration continues to propose tens of billions of dollars be allocated to green initiatives that may or may not be effective.

With China burning so much coal all these efforts are fruitless. ⁽⁵⁾

Two and a half years ago, China President Xi promised to 'strictly control coal fired power generation projects.' After being deceived, the UN, Greenpeace and Joe Biden did nothing at all. And John Kerry somehow saw only 'agreement' and 'hope.' ⁽⁶⁾

References

1. David Blackmon, "China is building new coal power so fast that energy transition by the West is meaningless," telegraph.co.uk, September 6, 2023
2. Julia Simon, " China is building six times more new coal plants thn other countries,' npr.org, March 2, 2023
3. David Stanway and Muyu Xu, "Analysis: China's new coal plants set to become a costly second fiddle to renewables," reuters.com, March 22, 2023
4. Alex Epstein."The ultimate debunking of solar and wind are cheaper than fossil fuels," alexepstein.substack.com, July 19, 2023
5. Sophie Mann, "China's growing use of coal draws pundits outrage as western natons spend billions to push citizens to reduce carbon footprint," dailymail.co.uk, November 3, 2023
6. Jo Nova, "China promised to strictly control coal then started 182 coal plant instead," joannenova.com.au, November 15, 2023

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