GEM – Boom Bust Coal, 2024

Since the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, global efforts to reduce coal-fired power plant capacity have been successful in many countries due to factors such as climate concerns and economic challenges. Despite this progress, the world's operating coal power capacity has actually increased by 11% since 2015, reaching an all-time high in 2023. China has been a major contributor to this growth, driving two-thirds of additions to the global coal fleet. While new construction starts for coal plants have declined outside of China, they have increased within the country for the fourth consecutive year. This is in contrast to President Xi's pledge to control coal projects strictly. Globally, there is still a significant amount of coal capacity under consideration, particularly in India and China, highlighting the need for countries to stop proposing and building new coal plants. To meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, countries must increase their phaseout commitments and translate announcements into concrete retirement plans for existing coal plants. Only 15% of the current global operating coal capacity has committed to retire in line with the Agreement's goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Phasing out operating coal power by 2040 would require significant retirements annually, emphasizing the urgency of transitioning to cleaner energy sources.