China and India still rely heavily on coal, climate targets remain ‘very difficult’ to achieve
The Huaneng Huaiyin power station in Huaian, China, on Nov. 12, 2023.
Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images
China and India have not reduced coal generation for electricity, according to a new study, making it harder for Asia’s largest carbon emitters to reach their climate targets.
While both Asian countries have ambitious plans to cut emissions, heavy reliance on coal — the dirtiest fossil fuel — continues to be the most reliable and affordable way of meet rising electricity demand.
Global electricity generation from coal has been consistently rising for the last two decades, nearly doubling from 5,809 terawatt-hours in 2000 to 10,434 TWh in 2023, a new study by energy think tank Ember found. The highest increases came from China (+319 TWh) and India (+100 TWh), the study showed.
According to the IEA, coal remains the biggest energy source for electricity generation, supplying more than one-third of global electricity. It will continue to play a crucial role in industries such as iron and steel until new technologies are available.
“It will be very difficult to meet targets without a rapid face down in coal. It’ll certainly be out of reach,” said Francis Johnson, senior research fellow and climate lead at the Stockholm Environment Institute’s Asia Center.
“We’re not phasing out coal fast enough,” he warned.
China
Asia’s largest economy has two big climate goals: to strive for peak carbon emissions in 2030, and reach carbon neutrality in 2060. Still, reliance on coal has shown no signs of waning.
Electricity demand in the East Asian nation has increased by sevenfold since the beginning of the decade, while coal demand has climbed by more than five times over the same period, Ember’s research showed.
China, the world’s largest coal producer, emitted 5,491 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from electricity generation in 2023. That’s at least three times more than the U.S. (1,570 MtCO2) and India (1,470 MtCO2), data from the study showed.
Just because you cut coal emissions, it doesn’t mean you get away with emissions in the other sectors
Francis Johnson
senior research fellow and climate lead at the Stockholm Environment Institute
However, the country has made notable progress in renewable energy development, leading to a slowdown in the rate of emission increase from an average of 9% annually between 2001 and 2015, to 4.4% annually between 2016 and 2023, the energy think tank said.
“China is very close to peak emissions and the clean energy transition is going extraordinarily fast,” Dave Jones, global insights program director at Ember, told CNBC.
“Even with very high levels of electricity demand growth, it looks like the levels of renewables growth would be enough,” Jones said.
Excavators transfer coal at the coal terminal in China’s eastern Jiangsu province on January 22, 2024.
Str | Afp | Getty Images
Clean electricity contributed to 35% of China’s total electricity generation, the Ember report showed. Hydropower — its second-largest energy source — made up 13% of that mix, while wind and solar combined reached new highs of 16% in 2023.
“Had wind and solar generation not increased since 2015, and demand had instead been met by coal, emissions would have been 20% higher in 2023,” the report highlighted, adding that those two sources can now generate enough electricity to power Japan.
But Stockholm Environment Institute’s Johnson warned China still needs to be less dependent on other forms of fossil fuels.
“Phasing down coal is absolutely necessary, but it’s not sufficient. Just because you cut coal emissions, it doesn’t mean you get away with emissions in the other sectors,” he noted.
India
When India became the world’s most populous country last year, power demand grew by 5.4% compared to 2022. This was more than double the global increase.
The country’s leaders have been optimistic about its path to net zero, making bold claims that 50% of its power generation will come from non-fossil fuel forms of energy by 2030.
Emissions from the power sector are expected to peak around 2030, while total energy-related emissions will reach their highest around 2034, Climate Action Tracker estimated.
Tuticorin Thermal Power Station in Tuticorin, India, on March 21, 2024.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
But the Ember study showed that added pressure from droughts pushed the country to generate 78% of its electricity from fossil fuels, where coal made up 75% of that mix.
Like China, India has also made significant strides in other forms of renewable energy.
In 2023, India overtook Japan to become the world’s third largest solar power generator, according to Ember.
Ember found that India’s solar power generation totaled 113 terawatt-hours (TWh) last year, representing a 145% increase since 2019. This ranks behind China (584 TWh) and the U.S. (238 TWh).
“When it comes to the pathway to carbon neutrality for China and India, you would expect the emissions to rise when demand grows. But at some point, the GDP growth needs to decouple with emissions where we need it to first peak, then fall,” Ember’s Asia Programme Director Aditya Lolla told CNBC.
The Canadian home improvement chain picked up a pair of Volvo VNR Electric semi trucks, and it’s putting them to work on last-mile delivery routes in the Greater Toronto Area.
This month, the Canadian home improvement retailer Home Hardware began operating two Volvo electric semi trucks out of its St. Jacobs, Ontario truck depot. The pair of trucks will fulfill last-mile deliveries throughout the area, and mark the company’s first step towards transitioning its entire fleet to zero-emission vehicles.
The Volvo VNR trucks have an operating range of 442 km (about 275 miles). Their delivery routes will take them from Home-brand stores within a 100-150 km (about 90 miles) radius of the St. Jacobs distribution centre.
“We are proud to introduce our new battery-electric trucks to our privately-owned fleet,” said Kevin Macnab, president and chief executive officer, Home Hardware Stores Ltd. “Recognized by the Private Motor Truck Council as Safest Large Fleet, as well as Trucking HR Canada as a Top Fleet Employer and a Fleet of Distinction, Home Hardware Stores, Ltd. is committed to forward-thinking logistics that evolve our supply chain to best support our dealers so they can serve their communities.”
Home Hardware debuted their new Volvo VNR Electric trucks at the company’s 60th anniversary celebration and annual franchise event, the Home Hardware Homecoming, held last week in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Electrek’s Take
Home Hardware is the latest in a growing list of companies – and they’re already adding to the tally of tens of millions of all-electric, zero emission miles driven by Volvo customers. By the time Volvo rolls out its next-generation VNL and FH electric semis next year, it will be the company’s third generation of Class 8 EVs, and it will be backed by more than 100,000,000 miles of real-world data collected by thousands of trucks across dozens of companies.
Is that an insurmountable head start for companies like Tesla to make up? It’s hard to know (and my brain is broken, anyway), but I invite you to check out this episode of Quick Charge recorded a few weeks ago (below) talking about Volvo Truck’s lead, and then share your take on the state of the electric semi truck market in the comments.
Quick Charge
SOURCE | IMAGES: Volvo Trucks.
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The newest edition to the CAA-Quebec roadside fleet is a fully electric Lion5 flatbed – and the CAA says it’s the first 100% electrique tow truck in service in North America!
Based on the Lion5 medium-duty truck and upfit with a flat bed body developed by XpaK Industries, CAA-Quebec (think AAA, but in Quebec) is marking an important milestone in its 80-history with the deployment of the first electric tow truck in Canada.
“Roadside assistance has always been in CAA-Quebec’s DNA, and it goes without saying that we are taking the lead in electric towing. We have a responsibility to set an example and take a leadership role in protecting the environment,” said Marie-Soleil Tremblay, president and CEO.
As far as the truck itself goes, the Lion5 chassis is packed with 210 kWh of in-house, 800V battery packs. Those are good for a range of up to 310 km (a touch over 190 miles) courtesy of an energy-efficient, high-torque electric motor putting 315 hp that Lion Electric claims can eliminate between 75 and 100 metric tons of greenhouse gas per year compared to a comparable diesel truck.
What’s more, the Lion5-based tow truck promises to reduce CAA-Quebec’s energy (read: fuel) costs by about 80%, and regular maintenance costs by about 60% compared to gas or diesel vehicles in the same class.
“With this new 100% electric, made-in-Quebec tow truck, we are helping to redefine the future of the towing industry,” said Patrick Gervais, VP Trucks and Public Affairs at Lion. “We are proud to be part of a cleaner and more sustainable future with players like CAA-Quebec and XpaK.”
The Lion5 tow truck was delivered in July, and will spend a year being put through its paces in a multitude of towing situations and extreme weather conditions. CAA-Quebec’s roadside assistance service will share its experience with partners throughout Canada and the AAA in the US.
Electrek’s Take
“Electrek’s Take” is where we put our industry experience to use interpreting the news we report. Here, in an article about a “first ever” new commercial segment being entered by a highly visible EV, I probably should be talking about operating costs, “dollars and sense,” and the importance of stabilized costs for a fleet manager’s projections.
Instead, I’m just going to picture some bro-dude’s lifted 4×4 Ram pickup getting hauled out of a parking spot he’s ICE’d and giggle a bit. You try it, too, and let me know if it made you smile in the comments section.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Lion Electric, via TowCanada.
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Best known in the US as the OEM behind Nikola, Italian truck brand IVECO entered the 2.5 to 3.5 ton medium duty commercial van segment at this week’s IAA Transportation conference with this: the eMoovy electric chassis cab.
Co-developed with Hyundai and riding on a modified platform of the Korean brand’s Staria ST1 van, the IVECO eMoovy is entering a red-hot commercial EV space with a 215 hp electric motor and either a 63 kWh or 76 kWh battery good for up to 199 miles of range.
The IVECO version leverages the Hyundai’s excellent 800V architecture. That means the eMoovy supports ultra-fast 350 kW charging and V2x functionality, so it can be used to back up a job site, supply power to workers, or even power a home (presumably).
A long time coming
We’ve known than a commercialized IVECO version of the Hyundai van (which isn’t sold as an EV, that I’m aware of) has been in the works for some time. In fact, Peter Johnson wrote about the 2022 deal way back in February.
In that article, Peter wrote that, while Hyundai would develop and build the chassis, IVECO would customize the electric vans to suit broader commercial markets and distribute the vehicles throughout its network. If that sounds familiar, that’s because (on the surface, at least) the deal seems pretty similar to the one IVECO has with Nikola … which begs the question: will Nikola get an eMoovy variant to sell in the US?
The new electric van will directly target Ford E-Transit customers in Europe, so there’s no reason to believe it won’t be an attractive alternative for commercial fleets on this side of the pond, as well – especially with the “big rig” street cred that could come with the Nikola association.
Electrek’s Take
The commercial EV market is driven by dollars and cents. If EVs have a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) than their gas or diesel counterparts? They’ll continue to sell, and their market share will continue to grow. The only question Hyundai and IVECO need to answer is whether North American truck buyers be more likely to buy a Hyundai-branded van, or a Nikola one.
We asked a similar question to Kia’s James Bell on Quick Charge a few weeks back. Listen to his response to those questions, below, then share your thoughts in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
Kia’s James Bell on Electrek Quick Charge
SOURCE | IMAGES: IVECO, CarScoops.
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