Coal Boom: 1600 new plants in 62 countries around the world – increasing 43%

“End-Coal” Global Coal Tracker does a magnificent job of showing how essential coal is around the world, and which countries are pathetically backwards in developing new coal plants. It’s probably not what the “CoalSwarm” team was hoping to achieve, but this map is a real asset to those of us who want to show how tiny Australia’s coal fired assets are compared to the rest of the world. The site itself is a fancy-pants high gloss major database and website that also shows how much money is in the “anti-coal” movement. Oh, that skeptics should have even 2% of these funds. Heffa Schücking, the director of Urgewald, which created the maps, calls it a “cycle of coal dependency”. Normal people call it “freedom and wealth”.

Chinese companies build coal plants — NY Times

These Chinese corporations are building or planning to build more than 700 new coal plants at home and around the world, some in countries that today burn little or no coal, according to tallies compiled by Urgewald, an environmental group based in Berlin. Many of the plants are in China, but by capacity, roughly a fifth of these new coal power stations are in other countries.

Over all, 1,600 coal plants are planned or under construction in 62 countries, according to Urgewald’s tally, which uses data from the Global Coal Plant Tracker portal. The new plants would expand the world’s coal-fired power capacity by 43 percent.

“Even today, new countries are being brought into the cycle of coal dependency,” said Heffa Schücking, the director of Urgewald.

Coal plants operating and planned for China and Japan

This map undersells the enormity of Chinese coal. Look at the number of turbines in some circles, 46, 56, 77, 167!

Coal plants operating and planned for USA and Canada

The largest number of turbines in one place is 28.

Closed or cancelled coal fired power in the USA and Canada

Coal plants operating and planned for Australia and New Zealand

The two in SA are in Whyalla (not Port Augusta). But the 18 in Victoria include Hazelwood’s turbines, so the map is not entirely up to date. Tell us again how shutting down coal stations in Australia will change storms, floods and cyclones in 2099?

In NZ coal use this week has doubled as the hydro dams dry up. h/t Greg from NZ

Closed or cancelled in Australia and New Zealand

Coal plants operating and planned for Europe

A continent in decline — look at how many have closed or been cancelled in Europe — Ouch!

Coal plants operating and planned for Eastern Europe

Coal plants operating and planned for India

India plans to double coal mining by 2020. One ‘dot’ here has 100 turbines.

Coal plants operating and planned for Russia and Eurasia

Coal plants operating and planned for SE Asia

The yellow dots mark the new announcements. The number of turbines is low, but growing fast. Obviously there is a lot going on in SE Asia. Indonesia has doubled its coal consumption since 2010.

Coal plants operating and planned for Africa

The saddest map of all. The total population of the whole of the 58 African countries is at 1.15 Billion people, and probably close to 600 Million people or even more have no access whatsoever to any electrical power. TonyfromOz shows how 22 African nations don’t even use as much electricity as the small town of Dubbo (pop. 40,000) in Australia.

Coal plants operating and planned for Latin America

h/t Pat and El Gordo, GWPF.

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