Coal bounces back

Presented by Equinor: Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Nov 21, 2022 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell Presented by Equinor Exhaust plumes from cooling towers at a coal-fired power station in Germany. | Sean Gallup/Getty Images Coal may seem like the power source of yesteryear. After all, the United States has spent more than a decade retiring coal-fired power plants and boosting clean energy, as countries around the world pledge to combat climate change. But global coal use is not declining — and may actually produce a record amount of planet-warming pollution by the end of the year. Despite significant reductions in the United States, where coal plants have shuttered in droves since 2010, global emissions from burning coal remain relatively flat. That's mostly because Europe and Asia have ramped up production as they struggle with the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, writes POLITICO E&E News reporter Benjamin Storrow. Transitioning away from coal, the leading source of global carbon dioxide, is key for zeroing out heat-trapping pollution and staving off the worst effects of climate change. Recognizing this, nearly 200 countries agreed to phase down coal during last year's global climate talks in Scotland. But progress has been slow, if nonexistent. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has only made it more difficult. Europe, seeking to replace Russian natural gas, has powered up long-shuttered coal plants. Coal generation was up 8 percent through September on the continent, compared with last year. As winter begins, European countries are looking to shore up supplies, which could boost coal output further. Global coal generation would probably be even higher if not for an economic lull in China, the world's largest coal market. Overall, global coal capacity has doubled in the last 20 years, and the majority of new plants are being built in Asia. And that has created a new market for U.S. coal miners. Pennsylvania-based Consol Energy told investors it was bullish on exports to India, where the company's coal is being burned in the industrial sector. India — the world's second-largest coal burner — has also doubled down on the fuel in response to soaring natural gas prices. "Global coal use and emissions have essentially plateaued at a high level, with no definitive signs of an imminent reduction," the International Energy Agency concluded in a report released this month. The upshot: Coal's surprising tenacity only underscores the difficulty in curbing the world's most carbon-intensive fuel.   It's Monday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host,  Arianna Skibell . Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to  askibell@eenews.net . PROGRAMMING NOTE: We'll be off for Thanksgiving this Thursday and Friday but back to our normal schedule on Monday, Nov. 28. Listen to today's POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy's podcast: Karl Mathiesen breaks down his main takeaways from COP 27 and the details a historic deal to create a global loss and damage fund. COP 27 Activists demanding climate finance and debt relief for countries exposed to the effects of global warming protest at the COP 27 climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. | Sean Gallup/Getty Images The world's most climate-threatened countries won a historic first at the climate talks in Egypt — securing a fund that would pay them for the damage wrought by global warming, write Sara Schonhardt and Karl Mathiesen. But the victory came at a price. Reaching consensus on the new form of climate reparations meant bargaining with a small group of petrostates and emerging economies, which sought to block the conference from doing much to mitigate global warming.   A message from Equinor: The energy transition is the defining opportunity of our time. We all have a role to play. At Equinor, we're doing our part by growing our renewable energy portfolio and lowering emissions from production. By the time the global population reaches 9 billion in 2050, our goal is to have net-zero emissions. Discover more about Equinor at www.equinor.com/USA.   Power Centers An orange sky illuminates a gas-powered generating station in California. | David McNew/Getty Images Social cost of carbon hike EPA has proposed a new estimate for the social cost of carbon emissions, nearly quadrupling a figure that has already drawn legal challenges from a host of Republican-led states, write Niina H. Farah and Lesley Clark. The metric puts a price tag on the damage created by each metric ton of greenhouse gas emissions. Agencies can then use it as part of their analyses of the costs and benefits of more stringent climate regulations. Everglades, not climate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis denounces "woke" green investments, says he's "not a global warming person" and has abysmal ratings from national environmentalists, writes Robin Bravender. So it might come as a surprise to those outside of Florida that the GOP governor — who's widely expected to run for president in 2024 — has been working to brand himself as an environmental hero. Energy summit France and Germany are trying to orchestrate a meeting early next year as they aim to make progress on difficult issues like energy and defense, writes Hans von der Burchard. The summit could signal that relations between Paris and Berlin are beginning to thaw. A joint Franco-German Cabinet meeting in late October was unexpectedly postponed as the two countries grappled with big differences on energy issues.   A message from Equinor:   in other news An oil rig extracts petroleum. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images Oil grip: Inside the Saudi strategy to keep the world hooked on oil. About-face: OPEC is eyeing output increases ahead of restrictions on Russian oil.   POLITICO APP USERS: UPGRADE YOUR APP BY DECEMBER 19! We recently upgraded the POLITICO app with a fresh look and improved features for easier access to POLITICO's scoops and groundbreaking reporting. Starting December 19, users will no longer have access to the previous version of the app. Update your app today to stay on top of essential political news, insights, and analysis from the best journalists in the business. UPDATE iOS APP – UPDATE ANDROID APP .     Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. The Diablo Canyon nuclear plant in California. | Michael A. Mariant/AP Photo The Energy Department will award $1.1 billion to a California nuclear plant in an effort to keep the embattled facility open past its scheduled 2025 closure date. SEC Chair Gary Gensler faces a growing political problem: He has a shrinking number of allies in Washington. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission concluded that a natural gas pipeline expansion would have limited environmental effects, dealing a blow to green groups. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   Mark your calendar! The fourth annual edition of the Future Sustainability Week will take place from November 29 to December 1. Take part in discussions about the most current and pressing sustainability policies together with our expert speakers. Join this three-day-long summit, either in Brussels or online, by  registering today !       A message from Equinor: The energy transition is the defining opportunity of our time. Our world needs energy to keep moving forward — but it must be affordable, reliable, and accessible. We all have a role to play. At Equinor, we're doing our part by helping accelerate the energy transition. We're growing our renewable energy portfolio and lowering emissions from production. We're already on the way to powering 2,000,000 New York homes with energy from the Empire Wind and Beacon Wind offshore wind projects. We're creating jobs, building tomorrow's infrastructure, and sparking new economic activity. But for us, that's only the beginning. By the time the global population reaches 9 billion in 2050, our goal is to have net-zero emissions. Discover more about Equinor at http://www.equinor.com/USA.     Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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