United Nations Secretary-General Guterres said, [The gradual phase-out of coal in the power industry is the most important step in achieving the temperature rise within 1.5°C. This means that by 2030, the global coal consumption in power generation must be greater than that in 2010. Decrease by 80% annually." Secretary-General António Guterres called on OECD countries to commit to phasing out coal by 2030, and called on non-OECD countries to phase out coal by 2040. Stop international funding for coal-fired power plants and shift investment to sustainable energy projects
The Coalition to Help Eliminate Coal was initiated by Canada and the United Kingdom during the 23rd Conference of the States Parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change in November 2017 to accelerate the phasing out of fossil fuel and coal power plants. The project has received financial support from the Canadian government and has attracted members from 104 countries, cities, regions and international organizations.
Guterres stated that [hope must be tested by reality," and the initial report on the Nationally Determined Contributions issued by the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on February 26 indicated that the reality is extremely grim. According to the current pace of progress in various countries , The global carbon emission level in 2030 will only drop 0.5% from 2010.
Guterres called on the [big emitters" to resubmit the larger-scale emission reduction targets before the 26th Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in November this year, and [immediately take measures to stop using in the power generation industry. The most unclean, most polluting, and rising cost of fossil fuels" is one of the most effective measures.
Guterres said, "In the past, coal used to bring cheap electricity to the entire region and provide critical employment for the community. But these days are gone."
He said, [In 2019, more than half of the world`s new renewable energy installed capacity cost less than the cheapest coal-fired power plant. Fossil fuel-related air pollution causes one-fifth of the world`s deaths every year. Coal is in The economic viability is also declining."
He pointed out that [at present, in almost all markets in the world, the cost of new renewable energy power generation facilities is lower than that of coal-fired power plants." The International Energy Agency`s calculations show that in China and India, new solar-scale power generation projects are being built. The cost is even lower than that of continuing to operate existing thermal power plants. [The cost of renewable energy is decreasing every day around the world."
Guterres made the following three appeals to all governments, private companies and local authorities around the world:
First, "Cancel all planned coal projects in the world and end the fatal dependence on coal." Urges "all OECD member countries to commit to phase-out coal by 2030, and other countries to phase out coal by 2040", while calling on "major emitters and coal users" and G7 members to take the lead in publishing coal phase-out plans. Specific plan.
Second, stop international funding for coal-fired power plants and shift investment to sustainable energy projects. Calling on "leaders of all major emission economies to seize the opportunity this year to announce the termination of international financial support for coal as soon as possible", and at the same time call on "multilateral and public banks, as well as commercial banks and pension fund investors to shift their investments to renewable energy." New economic field."
Third, start a global effort to transition from one coal plant to another, and finally achieve a fair transformation. Most studies agree that despite the inevitable loss of employment, by 2030, the transition from coal to renewable energy will result in a net increase of millions of new jobs worldwide.
Guterres said, "But we are very clear that the regional and local levels of impact will be different. We have a common and urgent responsibility to deal with the consequences of the speed and scale of the transformation. The needs of the relevant communities must be met. Pay attention to and provide practical solutions at each regional level."
Guterres called on the government, power companies, labor unions, and investors to join together to ensure a fair transition and decent work for everyone. "The United Nations will fully support this transition and ensure that the transition can lead to prosperous renewable energy. community."
Countries that plan to shut down coal-fired power plants
In May 2020, Austria's largest electricity supplier Verbund shut down Austria's last coal-fired power generation and district heating plant.
Australia plans to close coal-fired power stations by 2030. According to data from the Australian National Electricity Market (NEM), as NEM will increase the supply of a large amount of renewable energy in the next few years, by 2025, 3 to 5 of Australia's remaining 15 coal power plants will face financial pressure.
The German Coal Council recommends that the government shut down all domestic coal-fired power plants by 2038 at the latest to achieve emission reduction targets.
The British government announced in 2015 that it plans to phase out all coal-fired power plants by 2025. In January 2018, the United Kingdom launched a specific plan to limit carbon dioxide emissions per kilowatt of electricity to a maximum of 450 grams.
French President Macron announced in 2018 that all coal-fired power plants in the country will be closed in 2021.
The Canadian government announced in December 2018 that it would phase out traditional coal-fired power plants by 2030. This move is expected to reduce the country`s power industry`s carbon dioxide pollution by 12.8 million tons.
Japan's ITOCHU (ITOCHU) issued a statement on February 14, 2019, promising not to participate in the development of any new coal-fired power generation and coal mine projects, and to strictly evaluate the company's existing coal assets and gradually withdraw.
Since May 2018, Daiichi Life Insurance, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Marubeni Corporation (hereinafter referred to as Marubeni) and many other Japanese companies and financial institutions have announced that they will withdraw from the coal industry. In May 2018, Daiichi Life Insurance Co., Ltd., Japan's second largest insurance company, stated that it would no longer provide funds for Japan's overseas coal power projects. This is the first time that a Japanese financial institution has explicitly issued restrictions on coal power projects. In June 2018, Japan's largest insurance company, Nippon Life Insurance Company, stated that it would no longer provide funding for all coal-fired power projects in Japan and abroad.
In addition to Japan, European financial institutions such as NL International Group, Agricultural Bank of France, Deutsche Bank, and BNP Paribas have announced in the early stages that they will no longer provide financing for coal power and coal mining projects.
