China-backed coal projects spark fears of climate change

As greenhouse gas levels reach a new record, China's role in global warming is causing more and more concern.

For years, the increase in the number of Chinese coal plants has been criticized.

Ecologist groups now claim that China also supports dozens of coal projects far beyond its borders.

Coal is the most damaging of fossil fuels because of the amount of carbon dioxide that it releases when it is burned.

Last year, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere reached its highest level for 3 to 5 million years, according to the latest research from the United Nations Meteorological Agency. , the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

And last month, the UN climate panel said that coal should be phased out by 2050 so that the world has the slightest chance of limiting rising temperatures.

China-supported coal projects are underway or planned throughout South America, Africa, South-East Asia and the Balkans.

Contracts and funding for these facilities are often not fully transparent, but campaign groups, including Bankwatch, have tried to keep up with the changing situation.

"You can not be a world leader in reducing air pollution and the world's biggest financier for coal-fired power plants abroad," Ioana Ciuta, the group's energy coordinator, told BBC. .

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According to Ms. Ciuta, efforts to combat the polluted air of Chinese cities have led many energy companies to limit their coal-fired power plant ambitions in China and target their technology and workforce to l & # 39; abroad.

"By inviting China to invest in more than 60 countries under the" Belt and Road "initiative, it is perpetuating a source of pollution that has been proven to be harmful not only to climate, but also to the economies, "she said.

No carbon capture

In Serbia, one of the largest coal-fired power plants in the country is under development thanks to a loan from a Chinese bank and to the work of one of the largest construction companies in the country .

An hour's drive east of the capital Belgrade, in the coal-rich Danube Valley, construction has already begun on the site, known as Kostolac B3.

An existing power station dominates the hilly landscape, a continuous stream of pollution from a huge chimney and conveyor belts carrying coal from an open pit mine in Drmno.

The power plant is managed by the Serbian National Electricity Company EPS, which supplies about 70% of the country's electricity by burning coal – the rest comes from hydroelectric projects.

Now, under a contract of $ 715 million (560 million pounds) agreed by the Serbian government and Chinese President Xi Jinping, an additional unit is added, which will bring an additional capacity of 350 MW with the latest technology "super critical".

During our visit, we briefly see a group of Chinese workers wearing helmets from the construction site to a large set of housing blocks. From here next year, about 1,500 Chinese employees will be on the spot.

The security signs and billboards are written in Serbian and Chinese. The equipment and shipping containers carry Chinese tags.

I ask the responsible project manager, Zeljko Lazovic, what he thinks of such a large-scale undertaking entrusted to Chinese engineers and workers.

"In the coming months, many Chinese will come here and it will be a big challenge," he said.

"With the Chinese workers and the Serbian workers, we had cultural problems in the beginning but we overcame them and the cooperation is now very good."

Asked about the environmental cost of the new project, Mr Lazovic insisted that it would meet all EU standards for dust, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur pollution. .

However, the new unit will not be equipped with any carbon capture technology, so it will integrate into a set of China-backed projects that will increase carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.

& # 39; Locked in high emissions & # 39;

Christine Shearer is an analyst with the CoalSwarm Group, which closely follows the evolution of coal, and she sees the consequences.

"These projects are not compatible with limiting global warming to 1.5 ° C or 2 ° C," she said, referring to the two goals of the Paris agreement on climate change .

According to her, Chinese financial institutions fill the gap left by Western banks and agencies that have decided to limit their participation in coal.

"These projects, if completed, lock countries into highly carbon-intensive infrastructure and volatile coal imports, just as clean energy prices begin to fall below those of the world. coal."

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We tried to contact the China Import-Export Bank, which provides the loan, and the China Machinery Engineering Corporation, which is leading the construction, but we have not heard any news.

For EPS, the Serbian electricity company, the attractiveness of a local coal supply has combined with a cheap Chinese loan and prospects for important exports of electricity. 39; electricity.

Respiratory diseases

About 3,500 jobs depend on the Kostolac complex, but some people in the area are becoming more vocal about pollution in the area.

Momir Savic has shown how coal-carrying conveyors operate near the villages and he fears a further expansion of the operation.

"The quality of our air and water is very bad, we can not produce fruits and vegetables, there is also a lot of noise, all of which affects the health of the people who live here, many of whom suffer from respiratory diseases. ", did he declare.

EPS claims to spend hundreds of millions of euros on environmental protection, but its results clearly do not inspire.

Pera Markovic, a lawyer with Cekor, an environmental group, criticizes the fact that the company has not managed to limit pollution in the region.

But he concedes that Serbia is heavily dependent on coal for its power.

For how long? "Decades," says Markovic.

This is probably the case in many other countries, no matter what climate scientists deem necessary.