President Emmanuel Macron said investing in coal was “truly an absurdity” as addressed the COP28 summit today (December 1) as world leaders gathered in Dubai for the second day of UN climate talks
French President Emmanuel Macron urged G7 nations at UN climate talks today to set an example to other countries and “commit to putting an end to coal” by 2030. Speaking at COP28 in Dubai, Macron said investing in coal was “truly an absurdity”, AFP and France 24 reported.
Within hours Japan announced it will stop building new coal power plants that do not have emission reduction measures in place, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told the COP28 climate summit.
“In line with its pathway to net-zero, Japan will end new construction of domestic unabated coal power plants, while securing a stable energy supply,” Kishida said.
The pledge comes as energy-scarce Japan grapples with balancing its carbon emission reduction target of 46% by 2030 from 2013 levels with its increased reliance on fossil fuels after suspending many of its nuclear power plants following the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
During the summit France, backed by the United States, plans to seek a halt to private financing for coal-based power plants during the U.N. three sources familiar with the deliberations told Reuters in India and Europe.
The plan, which was communicated to India last month, is expected to deepen divisions at the COP28 summit in Dubai, with India and China opposed to any attempt to block construction of coal-fired power stations for their energy-hungry economies.
France’s minister of state for development Chrysoula Zacharopoulou told the Indian government about the plan in the run up to COP28, called the “New Coal Exclusion Policy”, for private financial institutions and insurance companies, two Indian officials said.
The plan to stop private financing for coal-fired power plants has not been previously reported.
A spokesman for Zacharopoulou did not directly comment on emailed queries from Reuters but said the question of financial investments in coal had been discussed at several different multilateral forums over the past few years.
A source in Europe familiar with the plan told Reuters the aim was to dry up private funding for coal power and that it was a top priority for French President Emmanuel Macron during COP28, seen as a crucial opportunity to accelerate action to limit global warming.
