The industry's powerful China Electrical Council called this month for ramping up the national coal power capacity to as much as 1,300 gigawatts by 2030, a 30 percent increase compared to today's levels. With nearly 1,000 GW in operation, China accounts for about half the world's coal-fired power, with the United States (259 GW) and India (221 GW) a distant second and third, according to the Global Coal Plant Tracker. Scientists have said that the use of coal -- the most carbon-intensive of fossil fuels -- must decline sharply if humanity is to avoid the worst ravages of climate change. A major UN science report in October said primary energy from coal would need to be virtually phased out by mid-century to have a reasonable chance of holding global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit). The 195-nation Paris Agreement urges nations to cap the rise in temperature to "well below" 2C. But recent studies have shown that even a 2C increase will profoundly alter Earth's … [Read more...] about Push for more coal power in China imperils climate
Coal power plants in china
China funds multi-billion dollar coal power plant projects in Vietnam
The Hanoitimes - Chinese finance supports 30% of all coal-fired capacity under development in Vietnam. Vietnam should reduce coal power for sustainable growth: EU, WB Chinese-involved Vinh Tan thermal plants cause million tons of coal dust Of China's US$36 billion in financing for coal-fired plants in 23 countries, Vietnam has second most proposed coal-fired capacity after Bangladesh, totaling 13,380MW, with the fourth most funding, totaling US$3.6 billion, according to a new report by the US-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). Source: IEEFA. Most of the projects (58%) are fairly advanced, with 4,800MW under construction and 3,000MW permitted, stated IEEFA. Forty-two percent of the capacity (5,580MW) has committed funding. Chinese banks have already funded a number of completed coal plants in Vietnam. In total, Chinese EPC firms have built fifteen coal-fired power plants in Vietnam, with Chinese banks providing US$8.6 … [Read more...] about China funds multi-billion dollar coal power plant projects in Vietnam
In China, unhappiness tracks poor air quality
Health-wreaking air pollution is a long-standing gripe of China's burgeoning middle class. (AFP/Nicolas ASFOURI) "The take-away is simple," lead author Siqi Zheng, an associate professor at MIT and director of the University's China Future City Lab, told AFP. "Higher levels of air pollution lower people's happiness in the world's most populous country." Dirty air is not the only blight on life in urban China, which is also plagued by soaring housing prices, worries over food safety, and poor public services. But health-wreaking pollution - especially microscopic bits from coal-fired power plants and factories that settle in the lungs - is a long-standing gripe of the country's burgeoning middle class. More than a million premature deaths every year in China can be chalked up to air pollution, the World Health Organization and other research groups have concluded. A toxic cocktail of small and larger particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and ozone (O3) is … [Read more...] about In China, unhappiness tracks poor air quality
Facilitating factors trigger new investment drive from China
China's JA Solar Holdings - invested plant in Quang Chau Industrial Park, Bac Giang province. Photo: Hong Quang. Tap into Vietnamese market Xie Guozhen, head of the Vietnam representative office belonging to China’s Nanjing C-HOPE Cement Engineering Group, said his group has so far executed five cement production lines in Vietnam. He revealed that it will begin the construction of a new cement production line in Lien Khe factory in the northern city of Haiphong in the near future. The Chinese firm has been raising concerted efforts to pursue Vietnam’s policies of energy-saving and eco-friendly production and to crack the Vietnamese market with their cutting-edge technologies. Such machinery can be used to utilize waste heat from a cement production to generate electricity and allow co-processing of waste materials in cement production, Xie noted. C-Hope, along with nearly 200 others, were seeking further business opportunities at a Vietnam-China economic … [Read more...] about Facilitating factors trigger new investment drive from China
China’s unbridled export of coal power imperils climate goals
China struggles to curb domestic coal-fired power and the deadly pollution it produces. The world's top carbon emitter is exporting the same troubled technology to Asia, Africa and the Middle East. The carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from these Chinese-backed plants could cripple global efforts to rein in global warming caused by the burning of fossil fuels -- especially coal, analysts warn. "China is a world leader in terms of embracing the policy and investment needs to progressively decarbonise its economy," said Tim Buckley, director of energy finance studies at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). "But internationally, China continues to invest in a range of coal project in direct contradiction to its domestic energy strategy." Globally, coal use accounts for 40 percent of CO2 emissions, and is on the rise after declining slightly from 2014 to 2016. More than two-fifths of the world's electricity is generated by coal-fired power, nearly double the … [Read more...] about China’s unbridled export of coal power imperils climate goals