A costly compromise on coal in the West

Going back on pledges to shut all coal plants in the country, France moved last week to fire two of the oldest coal-powered electricity plants in order to tide over surging demand that is only expected to rise during a long and bitter winter. Hammered by global energy uncertainties due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and Moscow’s erratic supply of natural gas to Europe, France cited “exceptional” and “unforeseeable” circumstances to justify its decision, and avoid the threat of rationing electricity and rolling power cuts. Some other nations in Europe, facing the spectre of similar power outages, may follow suit.

This is an understandable, if somewhat unfortunate, compromise. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has wrought hardships on the world, roiled global energy markets and exposed the fragility of supply chains. With no end in sight, nations are moving to secure the interests of their citizens. Yet, there is no escaping the fact that this move is detrimental to France’s climate goals and a disappointing signal for the continent’s climate commitments, though the overall impact of this move is likely to be temporary. There are three key learnings from this. One, Great Power conflict and geopolitical dynamics will continue to shape the response to the climate crisis — no matter what is being said at multilateral summits — because it will determine access to finance, technology and the pace of transition towards renewables. Two, coal and other fossil fuel sources will continue to hold sway in large parts of the world for some years to come. And three, local demand and domestic compulsions will carry greater weight for governments than international commitments in deciding climate policies. This is a lesson for developed countries, which often try to take the high ground on climate summits and coerce poorer nations to phase out fossil fuels quickly — if historical polluters can prioritise the welfare of their citizens, then the same space should be allowed to countries looking to pull millions out of poverty and needing the carbon space to ensure a life of dignity to all.