China's coal projects at risk of cancellation: report

Around 30 projects currently in the planning stage may be withdrawn.

A total of 32 coal projects in China, which are currently in the planning stage, are at risk of being cancelled, Fitch Solutions reported. 

Just last March 2022, a policy document, “Opinion on Jointly Promoting Green Development of the Belt and Road,” tackled the pledges of Chinese authorities to stop building new coal-fired power plants in other markets. 

“Although there is debate over what this means for plants in the pre-construction phase, we believe there are risks to the 69 projects and 71.5 gigawatts in the Belt and Road Initiative, and the 32 projects financed by Chinese banks, shown by the graph below,” the report read in part. 

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Citing data from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, Fitch added that about 12.8 gigawatts across 15 plants of China-backed overseas coal projects have either been cancelled, or suspended since September 2021. 

Moreover, a total of US$63b is at risk from China’s withdrawal from coal financing, according to the Clobal Energy Monitor.