China and other countries could be planning to build more coal plants to stimulate their economies in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic but nearly half of global coal plants will run at a loss this year, research showed.
London-based environmental think tank Carbon Tracker analysed the profitability of 95% of coal plants in operation or planned around the world.
It looked at 6,696 operational plants and 1,046 in the pipeline and found that 46% will be unprofitable this year, up from 41% in 2019, based on estimated revenues from wholesale power markets, ancillary and balancing services and capital markets, as well as running costs, carbon pricing and pollution policies.
That will rise to 52% by 2030 as renewables and cheaper gas outcompete coal, the think tank said.
China has over 1,000 gigawatts (GW) of coal-fired power, accounting for about 60% of the country’s total installed generation capacity and around 100 GW under construction.
London-based environmental think tank Carbon Tracker analysed the profitability of 95% of coal plants in operation or planned around the world.
It looked at 6,696 operational plants and 1,046 in the pipeline and found that 46% will be unprofitable this year, up from 41% in 2019, based on estimated revenues from wholesale power markets, ancillary and balancing services and capital markets, as well as running costs, carbon pricing and pollution policies.
That will rise to 52% by 2030 as renewables and cheaper gas outcompete coal, the think tank said.