As world leaders meet in Japan this week for the Group of Seven Summit, a new report has exposed Japan as the only nation in the G7 actively pursuing new coal power plants. The report, out by E3G, analyzes the market and policy contexts of coal use in each of the G7 nations.
“Policy makers are increasingly recognising the need for a complete phase out of coal power generation,” reads the report, titled “G7 coal scorecard update: Coal phase out commitments and closures.”
“Policy measures and transition plans are being developed to provide a managed pathway for power sector transformation. As a result, the UK, Canada and Germany have all improved their score,” the report says.
The report notes positive developments in all other G7 countries, including the United Kingdom’s commitment to end coal generation by 2025, Alberta’s commitment to ending coal-fired power generation by 2030. In contrast, the report says, “[d]omestically, Japan is still pursuing efforts to construct over 25GW of new coal capacity.”
