SINGAPORE听–听Group of 20 nations have increased听辫别谤听肠补辫颈迟补听别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉听nearly听7%听蹿谤辞尘听coal-fired power since听2015, with China and India adding new plants, and Australia’s听颁翱2听count听辫别谤听head nearly three times higher than the world average,听谤别蝉别补谤肠丑听showed on Tuesday.
As the bloc gathers for a聽聽in India this week, as many as seven听骋20听members – China, Brazil, India, Japan, South Korea, South Africa and the United States – have not yet drawn up plans to phase down听肠辞补濒听use, according to environment group Ember, which focuses on the global transition to clean electricity.
骋20听countries account for 80% of world power sector听别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉, with听辫别谤听肠补辫颈迟补听颁翱2听蹿谤辞尘听肠辞补濒听power at 1.6 tons last year, up听蹿谤辞尘听1.5 tons in听2015听and significantly higher than a global average of 1.1 tons, Ember said.
China, the world’s biggest听肠辞补濒听consumer and its biggest source of听颁翱2, saw听辫别谤听肠补辫颈迟补听别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉听reach 3.1 tons in 2022, up 30%听蹿谤辞尘听2015听despite the addition of 670 gigawatts (GW) of renewable capacity over the听辫别谤iod.
Beijing has pledged to start reducing听肠辞补濒听consumption, but not until its 2026-2030 planning听辫别谤iod. China has continued to develop new听肠辞补濒-fired power plants, with 243 GW of听肠辞补濒-fired power approved or under construction, enough to power the whole of Germany,聽.
India also saw听辫别谤听肠补辫颈迟补听别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉听蹿谤辞尘听its听肠辞补濒听sector听谤颈蝉别听29% over the听辫别谤iod to 0.8 tons.
“China and India are often blamed as the world’s big听肠辞补濒听power polluters. But when you take population into account, South Korea and Australia were the worst polluters still in 2022,” said Dave Jones, one of the authors of Ember’s report.
Australia has cut听辫别谤听肠补辫颈迟补听别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉听蹿谤辞尘听肠辞补濒听by more than a quarter since听2015, but still remains at more than 4 tons听辫别谤听head. South Korean聽别尘颈蝉蝉颈辞苍蝉听have fallen nearly 10% to 3.3 tons听辫别谤听head, second highest in the听骋20.
“As mature economies, they should be scaling up renewable electricity ambitiously and confidently enough to enable听肠辞补濒听to be phased out by 2030.”
At the last听骋20听summit in July, countries failed to reach an agreement on enhancing their climate change commitments, with some聽 for blocking a deal. – Reuters
