India tops coal plant construction in Asia excluding China

According to the GEM report, these three countries are accountable for 84% of the total construction activity outside China, despite a global downturn in new coal power projects. Flora Champenois, the Project Manager for the Global Coal Power Tracker, highlighted the contrasting trends in coal projects compared to the global shift towards sustainable energy. Champenois stated, "Seeing new coal starts bottom out and the face-off between projects under consideration versus those that have been dropped is a welcomed dose of reality ahead of tough negotiations at COP28."

The data, in line with the Bloomberg Global Coal Countdown, suggests a substantial decline in new coal power construction starts, projecting 2023 to reach a nine-year low. GEM began tracking coal plant construction starts annually in 2015. The report indicated that 2023 is expected to record a low of 2 GW of new coal capacity starts (excluding China), significantly lower than the average annual coal construction start of 16 GW from 2015 to 2023.

The report added, "China, on the other hand, initiated construction on coal power plants worth 37 GW in total capacity. This figure might further increase as data from Q3 and Q4 is not available yet." Furthermore, GEM's October 2023 report indicated that 110 GW of coal power capacity remains under consideration outside of China, encompassing 83% of cumulative proposed coal power in India, Bangladesh, and Indonesia.

The findings of the report come ahead of the COP28 summit, drawing attention to the challenges in balancing coal dependency with climate goals. With more than 95% of the coal plant capacity starting construction this year outside China, the summit discussions on climate action and sustainable energy solutions are expected to be intense.