Beijing struggles to balance climate pledges with focus on energy security

China's addiction to building coalfired power plants is becoming increasingly entrenched, even while the country is on track to peak its CO₂ emissions before its 2030 target.

- Amy Hawkins

As climate officials prepare to meet in the United Arab Emirates for Cop28, many hope the recent climate deal between the US and China, released days before Joe Biden and Xi Jinping met in California, can lay the groundwork for positive commitments at the UN's climate conference.

The last major Cop breakthrough involving China was in Glasgow in 2021, when Beijing pledged to peak its CO₂ emissions by 2030. Xi said China would "strictly control coalfired power generation projects".

But 2021 was also the year in which power outages blighted much of China, causing rationing, shut factories and cold homes. In 2022, energy crunches in south-west China underlined the importance of stable supplies, putting the pledge to reduce reliance on coal-fired energy in direct tension with the emphasis on energy security.

"Chinese officials view coal as the primary guarantee of energy security," said Anders Hove, senior research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. "For this reason, it is now considered sensitive to criticise the country's present investments in coal."