China’s power industry began construction on nearly 100 gigawatts of new coal plant capacity last year, the most in nearly a decade, a report from two clean-energy groups said Thursday.
Proposals for new or revived coal plant projects in China fell last year to 68.9 gigawatts from more than 100 gigawatts the two previous years, suggesting that construction starts could slow, report said.
The report from the clean energy groups said that China accounted for 93% of construction starts globally for coal power plants last year.
Construction began on 94.5 gigawatts of coal power plant capacity in 2024, more than in any year since 2015, according to a worldwide database of coal plants maintained by Global Energy Monitor.
The development raises concerns about the country’s ability to meet its carbon reduction goals and threatens to undercut China's massive expansion in solar and wind power, which has far outpaced that in the United States and Europe, the report said.
