China has significantly increased its coal power capacity, reviving concerns about its climate-changing carbon emissions.
Florida education advocates call for repeal of Schools of Hope co-location lawChief Deputy Brad Smith called the situation ‘horrific’ Father points gun at kids, asks if they want ‘to go to heaven with him’ before apparent Bradford County murder-suicide Read full article: Father points gun at kids, asks if they want ‘to go to heaven with him’ before apparent Bradford County murder-suicideHere’s how you can register for a parking permit in Fernandina BeachA power plant is seen from a train from Beijing to Shenyang in northwestern China on Jan.
3, 2026. A power plant is seen near Shenyang in northwestern China's Liaoning province on Jan. 3, 2026. FILE - Tibetan sheep graze at a solar farm in Hainan prefecture of western China's Qinghai province on July 1, 2025. A power plant is seen from a train from Beijing to Shenyang in northwestern China on Jan. 3, 2026. – Even as China's expansion of solar and wind power raced ahead in 2025, the Asian giant opened many more coal power plants than it had in recent years — raising concern about whether the world's largest emitter will More than 50 large coal units — individual boiler and turbine sets with generating capacity of 1 gigawatt or more — were commissioned in 2025, up from fewer than 20 a year over the previous decade, a research report released Tuesday said. Depending on energy use, 1 gigawatt can power from several hundred thousand to more than 2 million homes.capacity online, a sharp uptick from previous years, according to the joint report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, which studies air pollution and its impacts, and Global Energy Monitor, which develops databases tracking energy trends. “The scale of the buildout is staggering,” said report co-author Christine Shearer of Global Energy Monitor. “In 2025 alone, China commissioned more coal power capacity than India did over the entire past decade.”capacity nudged down the share of coal in total power generation last year. Power from coal fell about 1% as growth in cleaner energy sources covered all the increase in electricity demand last year. China added 315 gigawatts of solar capacity and 119 gigawatts of wind in 2025, according to statistics from the government's National Energy Administration.The massive growth in wind and solar begs the question: Why is China still building coal power plants and, by most analyses, way more than it actually needs?China is at an earlier development stage than the United States or Europe, so it needs more energy to keep growing. If more of the nation'sElectricity is needed to keep China's factories humming and to meet the high power demands of artificial intelligence, a government priority as it seeks to make the country a leader in technology. That 2022-23 surge drove the big jump in capacity last year as the new units came on line, said Qi Qin, an analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and another co-author of the report."Once permits are issued, projects are difficult to reverse," she said. Construction started on 83 gigawatts of coal power last year, the report said, suggesting a large amount of new capacity may come online this year.The government position is that coal provides a stable backup to sources such as wind and solar, which are affected by weather and the time of day. The shortages in 2022 resulted partly fromCoal should “play an important underpinning and balancing role” for years to come, the National Development and Reform Commission, the lead economic planning agency, said in guidance issued last year on making coal plants cleaner and more efficient. The China Coal Transportation and Distribution Association, an industry group, said last week that coal-fired power would remain essential for power-system stability, even as other sources of energy replace it. The risk of building so much coal-fired capacity is it could delay the transition to cleaner energy sources, Qin said. Political and financial pressure will keep the plants operating, leaving less room for other sources of power, she said. The report urged China to accelerate retirement of aging and inefficient coal plants and commit in its next five-year plan, which will be approved in March, to ensuring that power-sector emissions do not increase between 2025 and 2030. “Whether China’s coal power expansion ultimately translates into higher emissions will depend on ... whether coal power’s role is genuinely constrained to backup and supporting rather than baseload generation,” Qin said.The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’sCopyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.Children at gymnastics meet witness double shooting during violent robbery at nearby businessPlumbers flooded with calls because of exploding pipes from the extreme coldNew $45 TSA fee now in effect for some travelersWeather Alert Day: Dangerously cold weather continues Sunday morningSoutheast Georgia braces for extreme cold, community readies for weekend weatherVarsity 4 All-News4JAX football offense: Offseason changes led to record year for Xander EdwardsEpiscopal's Blakely Hammel leads the Varsity 4 All-News4JAX girls swimming teamBeachside's Adriana Jeanpierrce leads Varsity 4 All-News4JAX volleyball team
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Report says new coal plant construction surged in China in 2025China has significantly increased its coal power capacity, reviving concerns about its climate-changing carbon emissions. A joint report by two research groups shows that more than 50 large coal units, or boilers combined with turbines, were commissioned in 2025, a sharp rise from previous years.
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