China will press ahead with its multibillion-dollar financing of coal plants in developing countries, despite Beijing’s aim at reducing carbon emissions. In 2020, China opened three-quarters of the world’s newly funded coal plants, according to the U.K.-based monitor CarbonBrief, and accounted for more than 80% of newly announced coal power projects.
At home, however, President Xi Jinping has pledged to wean China off coal with a peak carbon emissions target of 2030 — and achieve carbon neutrality 30 years later.
China is the world’s largest coal consumer and emits about a third of the world’s greenhouse gases globally. Just under 60% of power in China still comes from coal, but a new five-year national development plan unveiled in March set a target of generating 20% of energy from renewable sources by 2025.
