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3. Nobody likes power cuts, especially authoritarian governments.

Many Chinese provinces suffered critical electricity shortages last fall. Factories fell silent in an instant. High-rise office buildings had to be evacuated without stopping the elevators. Chemical plants have lost their power and with it their ability to control heat and pressure in potentially dangerous processes.

In March, President Xi Jinping underlined that he would not allow his country to move away from coal without making sure reliable substitutes were made. “You can’t throw away the food containers you have before you get new food containers. This is not okay” said at a meeting Energy security of China’s national legislature controlled by the Communist Party has become the most important imperative.

4. China’s emissions will grow as well as renewable energy sources.

We’ve long expected China’s emissions to grow. The real question is how much and how much longer.

Xi said carbon dioxide emissions will peak before 2030. The country is well on its way to achieving this goal despite the current coal boom, as China also plans to add more wind and solar capacity this year than the rest of the world. according to one information he did it last year Bloomberg’s analysis.

Yet this is not enough to displace fossil fuels. In 2021, wind, solar, hydroelectric and nuclear energy sources accounted for just over a third of China’s electricity mix. (For comparison, the United States gets about 40 percent of its electricity from sources other than fossil fuels.)

5. Beijing is withdrawing from coal financing abroad.

China has said it will stop funding overseas coal plants. This is important because China is by far the largest global financier of coal projects, particularly in Asia and Europe. Some overseas coal-burning projects have been canceled in recent years, partly because of popular opposition in these countries, and partly because renewable energy prices have fallen sharply because they don’t make as much financial sense as before.

6. What’s next?

Theoretically, China could reduce its use of coal in the coming years as new renewable energy plants become operational. But considering how many new power plants are currently being built in the name of energy security, that will be difficult, says Qin.