Guo, Peng; Shen, Huizhong; Chen, Yilin; Dai, Hancheng; Mai, Zelin; Xu, Ruibin; Zhang, Ruixin; ... Tao, Shu; + view all Guo, Peng; Shen, Huizhong; Chen, Yilin; Dai, Hancheng; Mai, Zelin; Xu, Ruibin; Zhang, Ruixin; Wang, Zhanxiang; He, Jinling; Zheng, Lianming; Sun, Haitong Zhe; Ke, Kainan; Meng, Jing; Liu, Maodian; Li, Jin; Adalibieke, Wulahati; Wang, Chen; Ye, Jianhuai; Zhu, Lei; Shen, Guofeng; Fu, Tzung-May; Tsang, Albert; Yang, Xin; Russell, Armistead G; Driscoll, Charles T; Tao, Shu; - view fewer (2024) Carbon dioxide emissions from global overseas coal-fired power plants. Nature Climate Change 10.1038/s41558-024-02114-y. (In press).

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Abstract

Foreign investments in overseas coal-fired power plants (OCPs) largely impede decarbonization efforts, yet their global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have not been sufficiently quantified. Here we analyse investment data from 908 OCPs worldwide, and then reveal current annual emissions of 0.53 GtCO2 yr−1 and a historical cumulative total of 26 GtCO2. Developed nations account for 78% of these cumulative emissions on the basis of investments, while emissions from developing nations have surged from 8% in 1960 to 39% in 2022. Assuming unchanged policies and technologies, OCPs are projected to contribute an additional 15–30 GtCO2 in cumulative emissions by 2060 directly. Furthermore, they could stimulate local coal power growth in emerging economies, potentially adding 6.3–45.0 GtCO2 emissions indirectly. Our study underscores the critical importance of low-carbon policy interventions in emerging countries to curb the power-sector carbon emissions increasingly influenced by international capital.

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