Page 5 - AsiaElec Week 04
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AsiaElec COMMENTARY AsiaElec
More than one-third of the firms said aban- doning coal plans would harm their business by raising electricity bills and squeezing profits.
While 60% saw no impact at all from aban- doning coal, the remainder expected it to bring positive effects.
Conclusion
Japan’s continued support for coal comes as BlackRock and a number of other major inves- tors have said they will reduce their exposure to the fuel, claiming it is now too high an invest- ment risk.
Governments such as the UK government have also made commitments to avoid coal in their investment and development finance policies. In Japan, the government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe approved new plans to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and pro- mote support for hydrogen and carbon capture technology.
The COP 25 Madrid conference in Decem- ber 2019 saw UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres call for all countries to stop building coal plants after 2020 in order to meet the tem- perature goals in the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Koizumi is trying to bring Japan into line with these global movements, but Tokyo is being slow to break its link with coal.
Coal’s share of generating output is forecast to stay level at 26% until 2030, according to govern- ment plans. This would require the construction of 20 new coal plants to replace outdated plants that are closed down.
Its investment houses and manufacturers have continually talked up clean coal technol- ogy, and Asian emerging economies such as Vietnam, Indonesia and Bangladesh view coal as a cheap and convenient way to provide much- needed electricity in industrial areas.
The government supports coal sites along- side widespread investment and policy commit- ments to renewables.
Prime Minister Abe told Parliament recently that Japan now aimed to become a decarbonised society by investing in new emissions reduction technology.
Koizumi is calling for a faster retreat from coal in Tokyo, but his arguments are not being taken up by the government, which risks falling behind global trends and laying itself open to continued international criticism.
Week 04 29•January•2019 w w w. N E W S B A S E . c o m P5
