China is the driving force behind the goal rise of coal power, accounting for two-thirds of new additions according to Global Energy Monitor’s annual survey of the global coal fleet.

Global operating coal capacity grew by 2 per cent in 2023, but the good news is that this accelerated growth in coal capacity may be short-lived, as low retirement rates in 2023 that contributed to coal’s rise are expected to pick up speed in the US and Europe, offsetting the “blip”.

Data in the Global Coal Plant Tracker show that 69.5GW of coal power capacity came online while 21.1GW was retired in 2023, resulting in a net annual increase of 48.4GW for the year and a global total capacity of 2TW. This is the highest net increase in operating coal capacity since 2016.

A surge in new coal plants coming online in China drove this increase, of 47.4GW, coupled with new capacity in Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Japan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Korea, Greece, and Zimbabwe.

UK and EU member states represented roughly a quarter of retirements, with the UK (3.1GW), Italy (0.6GW), and Poland (0.5GW) leading the region’s retirements for the year. Only seven countries apart from China appeared to start construction on new coal units last year: one plant each in India, Laos, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Russia, as well as three plants in Indonesia.

Flora Champenois of Global Energy Monitor, said, “Coal’s fortunes this year are an anomaly, as all signs point to reversing course from this accelerated expansion. But countries that have coal plants to retire need to do so more quickly, and countries that have plans for new coal plants must make sure these are never built. Otherwise, we can forget about meeting our goals in the Paris Agreement and reaping the benefits that a swift transition to clean energy will bring.”

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