Emissions from coal power plants will be four times higher than the level consistent with a 2 degrees Celsius pathway if all coal plants in the pipeline were to be built by 2030, according to a new analysis released at the Paris climate conference today.
Even with no new constructions, in 2030, emissions from coal-fired power generation would still be more than 150% higher than the 2°C pathway, according to the Climate Action Tracker (CAT).
The CAT calculated the effect on global emissions from coal-fired power, comparing the compatibility of projected coal power production with the 2°C and 1.5°C pathways, as well as current policy scenario pathways.
There are 2,440 planned coal plants around the world, totaling 1,428GW, which would emit 16-18% of the total allowed emissions in 2030, if all were operational by then.
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Bangladesh plans to construct coal-fired power plants having a capacity of 20,000MW by 2030.
Including existing capacity with a service lifetime beyond 2030, total emissions from coal-fired power generation could reach 12 GtCO2 (gigatonnes of carbon dioxide) in 2030.
Despite the need to phase out emissions from coal-fired power generation, many governments – including the EU28 – are still planning to construct significant amounts of coal power capacity.
In many emerging economies, coal capacity is constructed to meet rapidly increasing electricity demand, while in the EU28, new coal plants are mainly to replace existing capacity.
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Another report published yesterday during the COP21 said the world is beyond peak coal consumption and that its appetite for thermal coal is waning.
The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) report titled “Eight Signs That Now is the Time to Invest in the Global Energy Market Transformation” describes opportunities in key trends driving market changes across the global energy economy.
“This trend has gathered remarkable momentum in 2015, as seen in sharp consumption declines in key coal markets,” said Tom Sanzillo, IEEFA’s director of finance.
“Much of this phenomenon is being driven by technological innovation and rapidly falling costs across the renewable and energy-efficiency sectors,” he said.
