Climate funds-financed Chinese plant to release 1.9 mn tonne CO2

A new coal-to-chemical plant in Shanxu province of China will release about 1.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, estimates Greenpeace East Asia.

The coal-to-chemical plant, according to Greenpeace that quotes Chinese media's August 16 report, will receive $224 million from the "green" or "climate" bonds, which aim to finance projects linked to the climate change solutions.

The emission -- 1.9 million tonnes -- is equivalent to about one-sixth of the carbon emission reductions China achieved through the closure of thermal coal power plants in 2014.

The Greenpeace activists have urged the Chinese government to remove coal and other high-emission projects from the green financing criteria.

However, at present China's criteria for green bonds, managed by the National Development and Reform Council (NDRC) and the People's Bank of China, also include construction of thermal coal and coal-to-chemical projects.

"There is nothing green about this project. With its enormous carbon emissions, the project will be a stain on China's hard-earned climate leadership credentials," said Greenpeace East Asia's climate and energy campaigner Huang Wei.

This is the second coal-based project to receive a green bond funding, after the issuance of over $119 million (RMB 800 million) green bond to a new combined heat and power coal plant construction project in Zhejiang province in May 2016.

Greenpeace East Asia estimated the Zhejiang project will emit about 900,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year once it enters production.

"We urge the Chinese government to reassess its green finance criteria and remove all possibility of coal project financing," said Huang Wei.

Once the Shanxu province plant enters production, the project aims to use 2.2 million tonnes of high-sulphur coal to produce 500,000 tonnes of methanol gasoline (MTG) per year.

Secondary production will include 65,000 tonnes of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG), 60,000 tonnes of durene, 73,000 tonnes of sulfuric acid and 25,000 tonnes of ammonium sulfate.

--IANS

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