Energy Insider: Looming Coal Mine Job Cuts, China’s Green Computing Power Push

China-U.S. climate envoys hold virtual meetings ahead of COP28, China’s highest-altitude wind farm linked to the grid, Beijing steps up support for electric buses

On Jan. 11, workers at Tashan Coal Mine in Datong, Shanxi province inspect coal cutters. Photo: VCG

In this week’s Caixin energy wrap, we analyze China’s biggest climate and energy news on policy, industry, projects and more:

• China’s expected coal mine layoffs in spotlight

• Green push for computing power development

• Highest-altitude wind farm connected to the grid

• China and U.S. climate envoys hold virtual talks

• Further effort to support development of electric buses

In focus: China expected to be ‘hardest hit’ by coal mine layoffs

What’s new: Chinese coal mine workers are expected to be hardest hit by worldwide job cuts in the industry over the next three decades, according to a report published on Oct. 10 by Global Energy Monitor.

Coal mines in Northwest China’s Shanxi province alone, the country’s largest coal-producing region, could slash nearly a quarter of a million jobs by 2050, the report said.

Across the world, the report projected an average of 100 workers will lose their jobs every day between now and 2035 due to coal mine closures. It also predicted more than one-third of the existing global workforce, or 990,200, will be laid off by mid-century, even without climate pledges or policies to phase out coal.

Why it matters: Around 2.6 million people in China still made a living by mining, washing, and selecting coal as of 2020, according to Chinese researchers, even after a four-year campaign to reduce the country’s coal production capacity cut the workforce by around 2 million.

“Retiring coal will bring a huge impact to this group of workers and the regions that are highly dependent on the coal industry,” Zhang Ying, a researcher at the Research Institute for Eco-civilization, part of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, wrote in People’s Daily in August. 

Finding a fair path for coal transition is key to achieving China’s 2060 carbon neutrality goal successfully, Zhang said.

Policy: China pushes for green development for computing power

What’s new: China is aiming to pursue a green and low-carbon pathway while developing its computing power infrastructure, which it aims to boost by more than 50% by 2025.

The instruction was listed as one of 25 key tasks in a sectoral action plan dated Oct. 8 by six state-level government agencies.

The plan directed government agencies and state-owned companies to build more green data centers and to gradually increase the portion of renewable sources in the energy mix of computing power infrastructure.

It also called for the development of a low-carbon ecosystem for the sector to help reduce the country’s carbon emissions as a whole.

Why it matters: China’s digital economy is expected to continue to grow rapidly, so it is increasingly important for data centers, which consume a huge amount of electricity, to adopt low-carbon strategies.

In 2020, data centers across China used 87 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity, 1.16% of the nation’s total, and emitted 72.9 million tons of carbon dioxide, according to the “Zero-carbon China: Data Centers” bluebook. By 2030, the figures could jump to 180 TWh and 150 million tons, equivalent to 1.5% of the nation’s total emissions.

Since early 2022, China has been channeling computing resources from more economically developed eastern areas to resource-abundant western regions to take advantage of their vast renewable energy resources.

Renewable: High-altitude wind farm links to the grid

What’s new: A wind power station located around 5,000 meters above sea level in the Tibet autonomous region was connected to the power grid at full capacity on Oct. 4.

The project, situated in Comai County at the foot of the Himalayas, is the highest-altitude wind farm in China, according to its developer, China Three Gorges Corp. (CTG).

The facility comprises 25 turbines designed to withstand low temperatures. It can generate 200 gigawatt-hours a year, enough to provide electricity for nearly 140,000 local families in the area annually, CTG said.

Why it matters: The move marks a technological breakthrough for China to harness wind energy resources on the roof of the world, which is spacious and prone to strong winds. Wind power can also complement Tibet’s hydropower resources to enhance its energy security.

The project’s director, Wang Liang, said that the wind farm uses turbines tailor-made for high-altitude regions. The machines can operate stably over the long term under extreme weather conditions, Wang said.

Diplomacy: China and U.S. climate envoys hold virtual talk ahead of COP28

What’s new: China’s climate envoy Xie Zhenhua and his U.S. counterpart John Kerry spoke via video call on Oct. 9, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) said in a statement.

The two sides discussed potential key topics at COP28, which is set to run from Nov. 30 to Dec. 12 in Dubai, the MEE said. The envoys also exchanged opinions about the areas of cooperation highlighted in the two nations’ two joint climate statements in 2021, according to the brief statement.

According to the ministry, Xie and Kerry agreed to continue to strengthen communication and coordination, and facilitate dialogue and collaboration between the two countries’ government departments, enterprises, and experts.

Why it matters: The two climate envoys have been holding talks regularly in a time window critical for the success of COP28.

Xie said at a forum in Beijing in September that he and Kerry had been holding virtual meetings once every two weeks since July when the two nations resumed their climate talks following a year-long pause.

Xie also noted that the two sides had been discussing the launch of a “Working Group on Enhancing Climate Action in the 2020s.” The mechanism, agreed by the two sides at COP26 in 2021, is expected to see China and the U.S. team up to tackle climate change on a regular basis.

Policy: Nine agencies enhance support for electric public buses

What’s new: China’s central government has called on all regions to enhance their policy support for developing electric public buses as it tries to build a sustainable transport system.

The instruction is part of a set of opinions published on Oct. 8 by nine state-level agencies, including the Ministry of Transport and the National Development and Reform Commission.

They instructed all regions to set up off-peak windows during the day to allow bus operators to charge their electric fleet more efficiently and affordably. They also directed provinces to offer subsidies to local transport sectors to help them transition their fleet to new-energy buses.

Why it matters: The number of new-energy buses on China’s roads has soared over the past eight years, up from around 37,000 in 2014 to 529,000 in 2022, Liu Xianglong, a researcher at the China Academy of Transportation Sciences, said at a recent forum.

However, some bus operators struggled to operate their low-carbon fleet during the past three years, due largely to mounting financial losses stemming from the pandemic and a lack of government subsidies.

The new guidelines indicate the government is trying to remove some of the roadblocks for electric bus operators and spur further growth in the sector.