A Close Review of China’s Claim To Cease Overseas Coal Burning
The Yuqia Coal Mine in the Qinghai Province of China.
By Emily Tsairis ‘25
On September 21, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that his country would stop its construction of overseas coal-burning power plants. Delivered via a prerecorded message to the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York, Xi’s sentiments included the bold proclamation that “China will strive to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.” This is clearly a large undertaking, and Xi recognized the “tremendous hard work” that it will take to meet these goals; hard work that will begin by bringing to an end China’s building of coal-power plants abroad.
What Does This Mean For Climate Change Mitigation?
This surprising announcement represents a decisive shift by the world’s second-biggest economy to distance itself from fossil fuel emissions. This policy of steering clear of coal production in the state’s international investments could incentivize the generation of renewable energy infrastructure in developing countries, which could have crucial implications on the planet’s battle against climate change. Human carbon emissions through coal burning have been on the rise for decades, a trend that has accelerated in recent years. In fact, according to a report by the 230 leading scientific experts of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the climate will likely surpass a 1.5-degree Celsius warming in the upcoming decades, which will irreversibly open a pandora’s box of rippling effects on such issues as sea level rise, coral reef death, and flooding. Many major public coal financiers have “sent the signal that they are moving away from overseas coal,” said Kevin P. Gallagher, a Boston University professor of global development policy. But with such a major player in the coal-burning world like China distancing itself from use of coal abroad, Gallagher indicates that this could be a real step toward such countries as China catalyzing green and renewable transformations.
The King of Coal
President Xi’s recent announcement is made all the more surprising given China’s long and intricate attachment to domestic coal use. Last year alone, the state funded the construction of more than three times as much new coal power capacity than every other country combined. A 2020 report by the Center of Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) found that China was building the equivalent of one coal plant per week. China is indisputably the largest emitter of atmospheric carbon through coal burning, making it the reigning King of Coal. This domestic demand for coal has led to a flurry of foreign investment for both coal mining and power plant construction. Specifically, China’s domain as King of Coal is woven throughout a dozen countries, its largest partner in coal mining being Indonesia. In Indonesia, China has 21 active projects and approximately 9.3 billion USD in investments at play. In Vietnam, China has 13 projects and 8.8 billion USD in investments, and the trend continues with a diverse list of countries that have Chinese-funded coal power plants, such as Ukraine, Turkey, and Bangladesh.
As one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, international and domestic forces have sought to hold China accountable before. Due to growing internal criticism over China’s air pollution due to its coal power plants, Xi pursued a decrease in domestic coal use in 2014. With the United States also establishing its first climate change policy in 2014, both the US and China announced in November 2014 that they “would jointly pursue plans to cut domestic greenhouse gas emissions,” which was seen as a key precursor to the 2015 Paris Agreement. Hence, China has the propensity to engender essential climate change conversation, as seen in these historical events of 2014 and 2015, and this influence has not dissipated.
Mixed Ideas from Officials Over Xi Jinping’s Assertion
However, some officials of international environmental aid doubt China’s current claims to reduce its coal use overseas, claiming that Xi is attempting to obscure China’s role as a polluter. Xi’s announcement did not address domestic coal burning, only focusing on its plants abroad. It’s additionally unclear whether this new policy applies to the coal projects that have already been approved by Chinese state banks, as indicated by Thom Woodroofe of the Asia Society Policy Institute. Woodroofe points to the fact that China is currently preparing to fund 40 gigawatts of coal power globally. Greenpeace seconded the concern by adding that over 20 new domestic coal projects were approved by China during the first half of 2021. The provincial governments that applied for the construction of these 24 new coal power plants were granted their requests, which alone will add a total of 5.2 gigawatts of coal power capacity to China’s domestic grid. Even if China is committed to phasing out its coal use abroad, Helen Mountford, the World Resources Institute’s vice president of climate and economics, asserts that this “does not let China off the hook from taking bold climate action within its own borders.”
However, China’s pledge to stop its coal power plant construction abroad does have positive implications for its Belt and Road Initiative, as it “could enhance its reputation,” says Jin Liqun, president of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a Chinese program founded in 2013 that seeks to build digital and physical infrastructure spanning across and connecting dozens of countries in Asia, Europe, and Africa. This initiative is often referred to as the New Silk Road due to its ambitious nature in establishing a large economic belt through its vast collection of development initiatives. Nevertheless, many nations, including the United States, have expressed criticism of the BRI because of its incorporation of coal power into these construction developments, citing the environmental dangers. Coal projects have constituted a large aspect of the BRI throughout its history; in 2015, 46% of China’s BRI energy investments involved coal according to the International Institute for Green Finance. But in the wake of Xi Jinping’s assertion that new overseas coal plant production is terminated, the Belt and Road Initiative could enter a new, renewables-focused chapter of its history.
What Happens Next?
While China’s plan lacks some specificity, Xi’s commitment to bettering its renewable energy objectives is significant in that it demonstrates the importance of “promoting dialogue and cooperation” among the countries of the world. The largest coal power plant users after China are South Korea and Japan, and both have also announced plans to terminate their support of coal power plants in the future: South Korea this past April and Japan in May. This increased level of mutual effort in actually taking measures to curb carbon emissions represents a sign of what can come in the upcoming, crucial years in the fight against climate change. World leaders will meet in Glasgow, Scotland this November for the UN Climate Change Conference, COP26. As the dust settles on Xi’s claims, there is strong hope of a powerful and productive discussion at the COP26 for the acceleration of action to save the climate’s future.