Goal of Ending Coal Power Generation by 2030s

Countries of Group of Seven agreed on phasing out of unabated coal power generation by the first half of 2030s in the meeting of ministers on climate, energy and environment. Although the agreement includes an exception clause, it is hard for Japan to achieve the goal, because it still depends on coal energy to a certain degree. It is likely that argument over resuming nuclear power plant is going to be accelerated.

The ministers’ communiqué describes their commitment to “phase out existing unabated coal power generation in our energy systems during the first half of 2030s or in a timeline consistent with keeping a limit of 1.5°C temperature rise within reach, in line with countries’ net-zero pathways.”

 

The communiqué urged the members utmost effort, not mandate, to reduce coal power generation. “(We) reduce as much as possible, in the meanwhile, the utilization of unabated coal power generation plants in our energy systems to a level consistent with keeping the limit of 1.5°C temperature rise within reach,” says the communiqué. Each country has a goal for reducing emission of greenhouse gasses. It can be interpreted that the ministers allowed G7 members independent approach as far as their plan seemed to be consistent with international goals.

 

Although Italy, the chair of this year, or United Kingdom has been willing to set a concrete goal for the time when coal fired generation would be terminated, Japan has been reluctant to do that. In the meeting in Sapporo last year, when Japan was the chair of G7, they did not set any goal, with reluctancy of Japan. Setting a goal should be a progress for European countries, even though it is conditional one.

 

Coal fired generation occupies about thirty percent of all energy in Japan. Not only has it made slow progress in introducing renewable energies into the system of power generation, Japan has also been unable to resume nuclear reactors after the severe accident in Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in 2011. Japan’s Strategic Energy Planestimates the share of coal fired generation as 19% in 2030.

 

The government of Japan has not found a way to get rid of coal fired generation. Instead building concrete plan to eliminate coal fired generation plant, the government invests in ammonia co-firing to coal power or building a facility of carbon capture and storage. However, it is still unclear how those developments will exactly contribute to achieve the goal of emission reduction or to implement international agreements.

 

Arguing that nuclear power generation is the key to reduce greenhouse gas emission, Fumio Kishida administration promotes the policy of resuming nuclear power plants. It currently focuses on restarting Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant in Niigata, one of the biggest nuclear power plants in the world owned by Tokyo Electric Power Company, setting nuclear fuels in a reactor without approval of local communities. Since there is no prospect for local approval, early resumption of Kasahiwazaki-Kariwa is unexpectable.