How Countries Plan to Get Rid of Coal

Coal is a major contributor to the climate change. It supplies over one-third of global electricity generation and plays an important role in a number of industries. So, after taking into account its impact on the environment, it is not hard to understand why many countries are trying to reduce its dependence on coal.

Twenty-eight countries joined the Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA). The purpose of this alliance is to get rid of coal, nonetheless, the world’s biggest producers are not among them. The new members of the group which include Poland, Singapore, as well as Ukraine, bring the total number of national governments involved to 48.

Nonetheless, China, India, and the U.S., the three biggest burners of coal worldwide are not ready to join the PPCA. Apart from the countries stated earlier, other major users and producers of coal have also not joined the group. Australia and Japan are not willing to join the alliance.

The world’s largest economy is not a member of the PPCA. Some U.S. states and cities including Los Angeles, are members, nevertheless.

Poland is a new member of the group. It is the second-largest consumer of oil in Europe. Poland is also the region’s biggest coal producer. Singapore also made a historic decision. The city-state is the first Asian country to join the group. Mauritius, Estonia, as well as Estonia also became members of the PPCA.

Coal and PPCA

The group whose existing members include the U.K., New Zealand, and Germany is working to “advance the transition from unabated coal power generation to clean energy”. It is very important that Europe’s largest consumer of coal wants to get rid of coal. Germany has the largest economy in euro zone, and it has the ability to tackle this issue.

This alliance is not only about countries. Some major financial institutions, including Vancity, HSBC, and Fidelity International joined the alliance on Wednesday.

Members of the PPCA pledged to end domestic and overseas investment in new coal power generation. They are willing to focus on green energy. Rich countries who are signatories have committed to getting rid of coal once and for all by the 2030s, and the rest of the world’s target is the 2040s.

U.K.’s Business Minister Kwasi Kwarteng explained his position regarding coal on Wednesday. He stated that “coal has no part to play in our future power generation”.