China seems to operate in its own bubble of rules
Image by Chris Feser
Imagine the apoplexy if our ecology minister said we’d fund coal power in the third world? Why is it only China that gets to build coal at home and abroad? What kind of developing nation can’t afford to run on “solar and wind” but is rich enough to be helping build coal plants in other nations too?
China has ‘no other choice’ but to rely on coal power for now, official says
Evelyn Cheng. CNBC
“China’s energy structure is dominated by coal power. This is an objective reality,” said Su Wei, deputy secretary-general of the National Development and Reform Commission. CNBC translated his Mandarin-language comments, which he made late last week following Xi’s separate remarks at a U.S.-led global leaders climate summit.
“Because renewable energy (sources such as) wind and solar power are intermittent and unstable, we must rely on a stable power source,” Su said. “We have no other choice. For a period of time, we may need to use coal power as a point of flexible adjustment.”
He added that coal is readily available, while renewable energy needs to develop further in China.
In 2018 China cut solar subsidies because it was making electricity too expensive.
China also intends to keep financing coal power in other countries.
China’s ecology ministry indicated that China’s funding of coal power in the developing world will continue. “China has supported some developing countries in the construction of coal-fired plants overseas,” Li Gao, director general of the ministry’s department of climate change, told reporters in Mandarin that CNBC translated.
It suits China if no one else is competing with it’s Belt and Road Project
How many favours will China earn by being the only major power providing useful energy?
China Is the Odd Man Out on Overseas Coal Financing
Laura Edwards, National Interest.org, April 26th
Despite its growing role in sustainable development finance—President Xi Jinping reiterated at the [recent Biden] summit that ecological cooperation is a key aspect of China’s Belt and Road Initiative—China made no promises to end coal financing abroad, even as Japan and South Korea, the second and third largest financiers of overseas coal power plants, take ambitious steps to stop funding overseas coal plants as part of their new climate change agendas. China, the world’s largest financier of overseas coal, is now the odd man out. Reducing global emissions cannot be achieved without moving away from coal. A pledge from China to end its financing for overseas coal plants would be a major boon to international climate efforts.
Who wants to be a superpower?
h/t GWPF
h/t GWPF
- In 2020 China built three times more coal power than the rest of the world
- China now has half of the worlds coal power fleet
- Secret coal boom in China. Photos show massive construction at “closed” plants. Death of Coal is FakeNews.
via JoNova
May 2, 2021
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