A single phrase in a recorded address to the United Nations General Assembly sent waves through the international climate policy community this week as President Xi Jinping pledged China will stop building and funding coal-fired power plants in other countries.Xi’s statement that “China will step up support for other developing countries in developing green and low-carbon energy, and will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad” had some analysts expressing suspicions or anxious for details. But the announcement was still “profoundly important,” coming from the country that is the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas and coal, accounting for more than half of global coal and steel production, said Tim Buckley, Director of Energy Finance Studies, Australia/South Asia at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.“When China moves, the world changes, dramatically,” he added. “And when the Chinese President speaks, China acts.”
Source: China to End International Coal Financing after ‘Profoundly Important’ UN Statement – The Energy Mix
