{"id":132283,"date":"2025-08-09T17:42:12","date_gmt":"2025-08-09T17:42:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/132283\/"},"modified":"2025-08-09T17:42:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-09T17:42:12","slug":"china-sets-off-alarm-bells-around-the-world-94-5-gw-under-construction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/132283\/","title":{"rendered":"China sets off alarm bells around the world \u2014 94.5\u202fGW under construction"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coal has powered China\u2019s growth<\/strong> for decades. As the country industrialized at a breakneck pace, coal plants became the backbone of its energy system \u2014 reliable, abundant, and deeply tied to economic development. Even as the world turned its focus to emissions and climate policy, the country continued to lean heavily on its domestic coal supply, seeing it as a tool for stability and energy security around the world. At the same time, China hasn\u2019t ignored the clean energy race. In fact, it\u2019s been leading it.<\/p>\n

China is active in multiple sectors<\/p>\n

The country has outpaced global rivals in wind, solar, and battery investments, setting new installation records year after year. Policymakers have promoted green infrastructure, rolled out decarbonization targets, and boosted electric transport. On paper, the energy transition is well underway \u2014 and even ahead of schedule in some areas.<\/p>\n

But progress on one front doesn\u2019t always mean retreat on another. And as global attention focuses on China\u2019s clean energy surge, a different trend has quietly picked up speed beneath the surface<\/strong> \u2014 one that\u2019s raising tough questions about the country\u2019s true way forward and the changes in the project once it appeared to be ready.<\/p>\n

New coal-fired power capacity<\/p>\n

In 2024, China started building 94.5 gigawatts (GW) of new coal-fired power capacity and resumed work on another 3.3GW of previously paused projects \u2014 the highest level of construction seen in the past decade, according to two think tanks. This surge, largely backed by investments from the coal mining industry, brings up big questions about the ability to move away from fossil fuels, the report warns.<\/p>\n

While the country massive additions in clean energy are expected to gradually cut coal\u2019s share of electricity generation, especially as the country pushes toward its goals of peaking carbon emissions by 2030<\/strong> and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060, the rapid growth in coal power presents a clear challenge to those commitments.<\/p>\n

The study reports that construction began on 94.5GW of new coal plants in 2024, showing that coal projects continue despite government pledges to limit fossil fuel use. Another 3.3GW of previously paused projects also restarted. Approvals for new coal plants came up in the second half of 2024, reaching 66.7GW, after only 9GW were approved in the first half.<\/p>\n

Driven by industry<\/p>\n

The report also points out that after a steady decline from 84.3GW in 2015 to 32.1GW in 2021, new and resumed coal projects have been increasing since 2022. From 2022 on, new coal project proposals surged \u2014 reaching 146GW in 2022 and 117GW in 2023. On the other hand, proposals dropped to 68.9GW in 2024.<\/p>\n

More than 75% of newly approved coal plants are backed by coal mining companies or energy groups<\/a> involved in coal mining, the study finds. This may be partly due to China\u2019s carbon goals pushing those companies to diversify, seeking steady demand for coal through 2030 and beyond.<\/p>\n

Looking forward to 2025<\/p>\n

The coal industry forecasts continued growth, which the report says will heighten the conflict between China\u2019s energy security<\/a> needs and its low-carbon ambitions. To shift the balance, strong policy action will be needed in 2025. That could mean making clear targets to cut coal use, phasing out coal plants, reducing coal plant operation rates, and boosting renewable energy.<\/p>\n

Other steps might include stopping approvals for new coal plants and speeding up the retirement of old ones. The report also points to reforms in how power providers are incentivized \u2014 such as limiting long-term coal supply contracts and promoting electricity market reforms.<\/p>\n

Coal is not the only thing that can generate energy, but it\u2019s seen as one of the most reliable sources for the next years. Specially with many industries, famous car automakers and technology companies advocating for the end of carbon emission.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Coal has powered China\u2019s growth for decades. As the country industrialized at a breakneck pace, coal plants became…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":132284,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[746,159,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-132283","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-environment","9":"tag-science","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115000046479502357","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132283"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/132283\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/132284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=132283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=132283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}