China will make full use of coal as a vital part of its energy strategy, leaders and officials said during the nation’s annual gathering of parliament this week, as it bids to balance economic stability with its longer-term climate goals.
Following a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) reiterating the importance of coal, delegates from across the country called for more investment in coal technology and new policies to shore up profits for coal enterprises.
Xi told a National People’s Congress delegation from the top coal-producing region of Inner Mongolia that China, the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitter, was “rich in coal, poor in oil and short of gas,” and “could not part from reality.”
He said green transition was a process, and China could not simply “slam the brakes” on coal.
Xi last year pledged to “control” coal use over the 2021-2025 period and start cutting consumption in 2026, as part of China’s contribution to the fight against global warming.
However, growing energy security worries have already driven mining output to record highs and seen new coal-fired power plants go into construction.
Delegates tried to bridge the gap between developing coal and curbing emissions by calling for more investment in clean and “smart” coal technologies, including carbon capture and storage.
They also called for measures to release more supply onto the market and further develop the coal chemical industry, published minutes of closed-door meetings showed.
Support was also needed to encourage technological innovations that could transform coal power into a low-carbon energy source, said Shu Yinbiao (舒印彪), a delegate with the advisory body known as the China People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and chairman of state utility Huaneng.
China also needs to establish a long-term mechanism to ensure coal and power firms could remain profitable and guarantee supplies, the official People’s Daily newspaper quoted Shu as saying.
Jin Penghui (金鵬輝), another CPPCC delegate and head of the Shanghai branch of the central bank, called for public funds to be made available to boost efficiency and reduce emissions from coal.
Australia has announced an agreement with the tiny Pacific nation Nauru enabling it to send hundreds of immigrants to the barren island. The deal affects more than 220 immigrants in Australia, including some convicted of serious crimes. Australian Minister of Home Affairs Tony Burke signed the memorandum of understanding on a visit to Nauru, the government said in a statement on Friday. “It contains undertakings for the proper treatment and long-term residence of people who have no legal right to stay in Australia, to be received in Nauru,” it said. “Australia will provide funding to underpin this arrangement and support Nauru’s long-term economic
‘NEO-NAZIS’: A minister described the rally as ‘spreading hate’ and ‘dividing our communities,’ adding that it had been organized and promoted by far-right groups Thousands of Australians joined anti-immigration rallies across the country yesterday that the center-left government condemned, saying they sought to spread hate and were linked to neo-Nazis. “March for Australia” rallies against immigration were held in Sydney, and other state capitals and regional centers, according to the group’s Web site. “Mass migration has torn at the bonds that held our communities together,” the Web site said. The group posted on X on Saturday that the rallies aimed to do “what the mainstream politicians never have the courage to do: demand an end to mass immigration.” The group also said it was concerned about culture,
ANGER: Unrest worsened after a taxi driver was killed by a police vehicle on Thursday, as protesters set alight government buildings across the nation Protests worsened overnight across major cities of Indonesia, far beyond the capital, Jakarta, as demonstrators defied Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s call for calm. The most serious unrest was seen in the eastern city of Makassar, while protests also unfolded in Bandung, Surabaya, Solo and Yogyakarta. By yesterday morning, crowds had dispersed in Jakarta. Troops patrolled the streets with tactical vehicles and helped civilians clear trash, although smoke was still rising in various protest sites. Three people died and five were injured in Makassar when protesters set fire to the regional parliament building during a plenary session on Friday evening, according to
STILL AFLOAT: Satellite images show that a Chinese ship damaged in a collision earlier this month was under repair on Hainan, but Beijing has not commented on the incident Australia, Canada and the Philippines on Wednesday deployed three warships and aircraft for drills against simulated aerial threats off a disputed South China Sea shoal where Chinese forces have used risky maneuvers to try to drive away Manila’s aircraft and ships. The Philippine military said the naval drills east of Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島) were concluded safely, and it did not mention any encounter with China’s coast guard, navy or suspected militia ships, which have been closely guarding the uninhabited fishing atoll off northwestern Philippines for years. Chinese officials did not immediately issue any comment on the naval drills, but they
RSS