We will almost all share the observation, the year 2020 is for the moment not the best that we have known in our small lives. This is perhaps why we jump on the first good news coming like a Mbappé in front of a goal ball. Coronavirus obliges, but also thanks to the strengthening of restrictions, the global capacity of electricity production by coal plants fell in the first half of 2020 for the first time since its measurements were recorded, according to an analysis by the British site Carbon Brief.
"This year was the first period in which more coal-fired power generation capacity was withdrawn than commissioned," according to this analysis, released Monday, based on figures from the Global Coal Plant Tracker of the American NGO Global Energy Monitor (GEM).
Continuous increase for more than twenty years
From January 1 to June 30, new plants were commissioned for a total of 18.3 gigawatts (GW) of generation capacity. Conversely, the closure of sites represented 21.2 GW, ie a net decrease in world production capacity from 2.9 GW, to 2,047 GW.
The study recalls by way of comparison that “the world capacity of coal production had increased on average by 25 GW every six months during the two previous decades, from 2000 to 2019.” This decrease is explained by the decrease of electricity demand linked to the pandemic and the tightening of pollution regulations, according to the report.
China donkey hat, Europe a good student
The development of new thermal power plants is mainly concentrated in China (+11.4 GW in 2020), while withdrawals are mainly in Europe and the United Kingdom (-8.3 GW). According to GEM figures, 189.8 GW of production capacity is still under construction, and 331.9 GW more are planned.
“This goes against the calls of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, for a global moratorium on new coal-fired power stations after 2020.” “There is no clean coal and coal no "has no place in rational recovery plans," pleaded UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in a speech to China at the end of July.
Black raise attempt
China is suspected of wanting to accelerate coal production to revive its economy, after the brakes caused by the epidemic of new coronavirus at the start of the year.
Coal represented 57.7% of China's energy balance last year, down 1.5 points over one year. But as total energy consumption increased, that of coal grew by 1%, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
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