China Energy will add 11 GW of coal-fired capacity by 2020 (China)

China Energy Investment Corporation (CIEC) has announced its plans to commission over 6 GW of ultra-low emission coal-fired power capacity in China by the end of 2019 and another 5 GW by the end of 2020, to meet an ever-growing power demand. The new power plants will not only increase capacity but also gradually replace less efficient and more pollutant units. The company will also develop a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in northwest China in 2020; it already operates a CCS plant at its coal-to-liquid plant in Erdos (Inner Mongolia).

The group plans to develop coal-fired power plants in regions with poor wind and solar resources, as gas is still considered too expensive. In June 2019, the National Energy Administration (NEA) allowed Chinese regions to choose the most accessible energy to guarantee winter heating after stricter policies led to heating shortage in recent years. The NEA also offered support for cities to develop centralised "clean coal" heating systems.

CEIC is the largest power utility in China in terms of power capacity (225 GW in 2017, including 178 GW of thermal power plants and 36 GW of wind capacity) and in terms of asset value (estimated at US$271bn in China and the world). The company was formed in 2017 through the merger of China Guodian Corporation (143 GW) and coal producer Shenhua Group (82 GW).