War Derails Plan to Ditch Coal After UK Championed Global Cuts
Britain spearheaded commitments to end dirty power when it hosted COP26. Now energy security is the top priority.
Cooling towers at Electricite de France SA's coal-fired power station in West Burton, UK
Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/BloombergWhen the COP26 climate talks concluded in November, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared the world had reached a point of no return in phasing out coal. At the same time, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba warned Europe that Russia was amassing forces near its border.
Those seemingly unrelated proclamations in Glasgow and Kyiv have become entwined seven months later as Russia’s war on Ukraine forces countries to make up for limited gas supplies. The UK now aims to keep a reserve of coal-fired plants available this winter rather than shutting almost all of them over the next three months as planned.