China’s Coal Expansion Hits a Nine-Year High, Undermining Emissions Targets
A coal power plant in Baoding, China (Photo: AP News/Ng Han Guan)
On Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) published its biannual review of coal projects in China. According to the report, the country began construction on 94.5 gigawatts of new coal plants in 2024, marking a nine-year high. China is now the undeniable leader in coal expansion, accounting for 93% of all new coal power plant construction globally.
The nation’s dominance in coal construction highlights a contradictory dynamic, as China also leads the world in renewable energy development. China remains the world’s largest exporter of clean energy equipment, and in 2024, it added 357 gigawatts to its solar and wind capacity—over four times the additions made by the European Union. This unprecedented growth allowed China to surpass President Xi Jinping’s 2020 target of 1,200 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030, solidifying its image as a global leader for a greener future. Yet, the rapid expansion of coal power threatens to undermine China’s broader environmental goals.
Chinese President Xi Jinping at the 2020 UN General Assembly (Photo: UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe)
In a speech at the 2020 U.N. General Assembly, Xi Jinping called for a “green revolution,” vowing to vigorously raise emissions reduction targets. He outlined two goals to peak CO2 emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. However, a January 2025 report from Carbon Brief shows that China’s CO2 emissions grew by 0.8% in 2024. While emissions surged by 3.8% in the first quarter, attributed to energy demand post-COVID-19, they stabilized in the latter part of the year. Still, this growth is far higher than the predicted 2% reduction, as China’s coal usage is not declining quickly enough to meet its climate goals.
CREA’s review underscores how China’s ongoing reliance on coal is limiting the integration and utilization potential of its renewable energy sector. Long-term coal power contracts create financial penalties for electricity buyers who fail to meet their required volumes, discouraging the prioritization of clean energy sources. Ensuing environmental consequences became apparent in the fourth quarter of 2024, when fossil fuel generation remained high, even as solar and wind utilization dropped significantly—an anomaly unexplained by weather conditions. In November 2024, despite ideal conditions for solar and wind generation, coal power provided nearly 40% of the month's increase in electricity production.
Rather than replacing coal, China has expanded renewable energy alongside it, accelerating growth in both sectors at an unprecedented pace. However, as fossil fuels continue to stifle the potential of clean energy, and new coal plant construction signals a significant amount of coal plants to come in the next few years, even record-breaking wind and solar investments may not curb emissions. With China among the 200 nations missing the February 2025 U.N. deadline for updated emissions reduction plans, its credibility as a global climate leader is increasingly in question. Although China remains the top investor in renewables, their struggle to curb coal usage raises concerns about the broader fight against climate change.