China has reined back its coal power plant building push with 80% fewer getting the green light in the first half of the year, compared to the same six months in 2023, YahooNews reported.
Chinese officials gave the go-ahead to 10.3 gigawatts of new coal capacity from January through June, compared to the 50.4 gigawatts approved in the first half of last year, according to analysis by Greenpeace and the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, the news site’s story continued.
Analysts say that while China is keen on renewables, and is building twice as much wind and solar as the rest of the world combined, Beijing still looks to coal to meet demand when solar and wind fall short, the report went on.
And Gao Yuhe, project lead for Greenpeace East Asia, asked: “Are Chinese provinces slowing down coal approvals because they’ve already approved so many? Or are these the last gasps of coal power in an energy transition that has seen coal become increasingly impractical? Only time can tell.”
Read the full story: YahooNews
- By Sean O’Meara
Also on AF:
China Coal Output Rises But Power Generation Use Declines
China Turns to Carbon Capture, Biomass For Coal Power Emissions
Global Coal Capacity Growth Blamed on China, EU, US – FT
China Wind, Solar Capacity Set to Outstrip Coal For First Time
