Advanced Coal-fired Technology
CLP needs to strike a delicate balance between our principles of long-term sustainability while supplying cost-effective power to the public in an era when coal is still the mainstream fuel for power generation.
Coal-fired power is affordable due to ample fuel supply and well-established power generation technologies. While CLP moves towards completely replacing coal, we will operate coal-fired plants in the most environmental-friendly way possible, with the latest and most efficient technologies.
The Fangchenggang coal-fired plant in Guangxi, majority owned by CLP, is a case in point. It utilises supercritical coal-firing technology which is more efficient than traditional coal-firing technologies, producing the same amount of energy with less coal, thus reducing carbon and pollutant emissions. The Fangchenggang facility has provided value for our stakeholders in several ways: it contributed significantly to the “West-East Power Transmission Project”, alleviating the power shortage in East China, provided employment and training opportunities for the power sector in Guangxi Province, and generated returns for our investors.
As technology advances, CLP is confident that we can meet the power demands of Mainland China while realising the goals set out in “Climate Vision 2050”, which is to reduce 80% in carbon intensity of the power generation portfolio by 2050. Our “Climate Vision 2050” was further updated in 2021 to align with climate science and industry best practice: a pledge to not additionally invest in any coal-fired generation capacity, while gradually phasing out all existing coal-fired assets by 2040 — a decade earlier than pledged previously.