Researchers sound the alarm about concerning move China is making: 'It will be much harder to achieve'

China's momentum toward investing in clean power sources is slowing as the country is building a ton of coal plants right now, according to Reuters. 

What's happening?

As the outlet reported, China broke ground on 94.5 gigawatts of coal-based power sources in 2024. That's enough power to turn on nearly 10 billion light bulbs, but all created at the expense of adding more pollution to the planet. 

It's the most new coal projects in the country since 2015, marking a significant countertrend to the clean energy strides it had been taking in recent years.  

Coal has been king for a long time in China. The nation is the world's biggest coal consumer and biggest polluter of planet-warming gases — followed by the United States and India. It had pledged to crack down on using the dirty power source, but power shortages in recent years led to an increase in coal production, Reuters explained. 

Why do new coal projects matter?

The longer our power grids rely on energy sources like coal, oil, or gas, the quicker the planet overheats and our ecosystems destabilize. On the other hand, the more clean energy fed to the grid, the better off we'll be. 

In China, the new goal is to cut down on coal reliance over the next five years before 2030. However, the negative effect of this goal is that the coal industry is now working twice as hard to get new projects off the ground before any restrictions go live. As a result, uptake of clean energies is declining as they fight for space on the grid, Reuters reported. 

"If coal maintains a high share in China's power system for too long, it will be much harder to achieve a rapid decline in emissions," said Qi Qin, a researcher at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, per Reuters. 

What's being done about Chinese coal power?

While the construction of new coal projects is worrisome, clean energy is still growing its stake in China. More than 100 gigawatts of coal power were decommissioned in the last 10 years, and the new projects are only allowed if they are backing up a clean energy source. 

As Reuters reported, significant amounts of wind and solar power sources were also created last year, which helped the nation hit its clean energy target for 2030 — a capacity of 1,200 gigawatts — six years early. 

Plus, the regulations on new coal power that may come down the pike between 2026-2030 could help curb the industry's recent gains.

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"China's current push for new coal power is primarily driven by industry interests that are advancing coal expansion under the banner of energy security," said Qi, per Reuters. 

"This … could pose challenges for global climate efforts," Qi added. "Countries are expected to increase their ambitions for 2035 targets."

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