"China and other governments may be tempted to invest in coal power to help their economies recover after the COVID-19 pandemic," said Matt Gray, co-head of power and utilities at Carbon Tracker, a climate think tank. China, which produces and consumes about half of the world’s coal, has in recent weeks said it would allow more provinces to start building coal power plants starting in 2023. Coal power infrastructure in Asia relies heavily on state-backed financing from China, South Korea and Japan. SOUTHEAST ASIADoosan Heavy is slated to provide equipment for coal plants in South and Southeast Asia, where emissions standards are lower than in South Korea, including the $3.5 billion Jawa 9 & 10 coal plants in Indonesia. "But with renewables' financing constrained post-pandemic, Southeast Asian policymakers may ignore environmental impacts and buckle to the lure of Chinese build and finance coal power plants."

Source: bd News24 May 12, 2020 05:26 UTC