China Climate Advisers Say More Coal Needed for Energy Security
- Importance of energy security has escalated amid Ukraine war
- Electricity market reforms needed to back green goals
A coal depot near a power station in Jiaxing, Zhejiang province, China.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
China’s plans to add to its world-leading fleet of coal power plants are a short-term Band-Aid to address energy security concerns and don’t represent a shift in emissions policies, according to members of the team representing the nation at the COP27 summit.
New plants are being planned to address a spate of high-profile electricity shortages in recent years while providing a buffer to global energy markets that have become more volatile following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to interviews with three of China’s delegates at the climate meeting in Egypt.