China massively accelerated its coal power plans in 2022, quadrupling the number of new permits and approving enough new capacity to supply all the UK’s needs, reports Bloomberg. Local governments permitted 106 gigawatts of new plants, the most since 2015, according to a report from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and Global Energy Monitor.
Construction has already begun on 50 gigawatts, six times more than in the rest of the world combined, the researchers said.
“China continues to be the glaring exception to the ongoing global decline in coal plant development,” said Flora Champenois, an analyst at Global Energy Monitor. “The speed at which projects progressed through permitting to construction in 2022 was extraordinary, with many projects sprouting up, gaining permits, obtaining financing and breaking ground apparently in a matter of months.”