China’s Green Push Kicks Off With a New $10 Billion Coal Project
- Plant approved same day Beijing releases green five-year plan
- Coal likely to stay a big part of China energy mix this decade
Photographer: Lucas Schifres/Bloomberg
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A Chinese energy company decided to go ahead with a $10 billion coal-to-chemicals plant on the same day that Beijing announced its first short-term blueprint aimed at putting it on a path to carbon neutrality by 2060.
Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group Co.’s board approved the project Friday, just as the central government was releasing the 14th five-year plan, which focused on promoting renewable energy but lacked hard targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The decision by Ningxia and its timing is evidence that coal will still play a major role in China’s energy mix for the foreseeable future.