Ending the burning of coal is considered vital if the world is to deal with climate change. Coal is the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel and the toxic fumes produced when it is burnt contribute to millions of deaths each year. Since the days of Victorian pea soupers there have been calls for an alternative energy source. Today, with renewables providing cheaper power than fossil fuels 77 per cent of the time and climate change top of the political agenda, many believe the death of coal is in sight.
In September, Chinese premier Xi Jinping told the UN General Assembly that China would build “no new power plants abroad”. The announcement was significant: China’s 54GW international coal pipeline is considerable – the same size as the combined electricity grids of Finland, Denmark and Belgium – and also because other investors will likely become more reluctant to invest in new coal without Chinese public finance as a “keystone” partner, says Leo Roberts from think tank E3G.
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