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Energy Day, COP27, Egypt:  The Powering Past Coal Alliance will today celebrate the publication of its first progress report* and welcome four new partners: CDP, the Global Health and Climate Alliance, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment and the Southeast Asian Energy Transition Partnership will all support the work of the Alliance going forward.  

Announcing these new partners at an event marking the Alliance’s fifth anniversary taking place at the Canada Pavilion at COP27, 

Canada Minister of Environment and Climate Change and PPC co-chair, Steven Guilbeault, said, “Consigning coal to history is the only way to ensure a clean, sustainable future but as the IEA’s report on coal has made plain today there is still much to do and no time to lose. So, it’s encouraging to welcome four new partners to the Alliance on our fifth anniversary. We hope their leadership will encourage many more countries, subnationals, utilities and financial institutions to join the Alliance and work together to take swift action to phase out coal power.” 

UK Minister of State for Climate Change and PPCA co-Chair, Graham Stuart, said, “It’s a great pleasure to welcome new partners to the Alliance, which has done so much to drive remarkable progress on coal phase-out over the past five years. A future without emissions from coal power is achievable, but it is vital that more governments and organisations join the PPCA, setting ambitious coal phase-out dates, to secure a just and secure clean energy transition.”   

Responding as new partners supporting the work of the Alliance:  

CDP Founder Chair, Paul Dickinson, said, “The world is on track for climate catastrophe if emissions continue at their current levels. All real economy actors, as well as governments, subnational governments and financial institutions, must act swiftly to phase out coal power. CDP looks forward to supporting PPCA and working with its members to ensure they report transparently on their progress to deliver their bold commitments aligned with science.”  

Director for Southeast Asia Energy Transition Partnership, Sirpa Jarvenpaa, said, “The Southeast Asia Energy Transition Partnership is delighted to join the Alliance, which brings together global experience and expertise in energy transition and coal phase down. ETP supports the governments of Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam with pragmatic and viable measures to achieve just energy transition. ETP will engage with PPCA to leverage the experience of the Alliance to pursue concrete solutions in Southeast Asia to achieve the Region’s greenhouse gas reductions commitments through coal phase down and renewable energy deployment.”

Executive Director of the Global Climate and Health Alliance, Jeni Miller, said: “Coal burning takes an enormous toll on people’s health, as well as propelling us towards deadly climate tipping points. Governments must embrace and implement the already available and ready to scale clean energy technologies and ensure that people have the access to energy that they need without sacrificing their health. There is no time to lose – the health, well-being, and indeed lives of people all around the world are at stake. The Global Climate and Health Alliance is proud to join the Powering Past Coal Alliance to work alongside governments that are ready to lead the way.” 

Interim Executive Director, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, Raissa Marks, said, “We know that jurisdictions heavily reliant on coal can wean themselves off it quickly given the right supportive policies, as seen in the very rapid Ontario and Alberta coal phase- outs. Our organisation, being involved in these successes, is excited to lend our expertise and support to the PPCA so that these Canadian success stories can be replicated around the world, as it must if we are going to prevent true climate calamity.” 

The PPCA recognises the need for a global transition and that many countries, particularly the most vulnerable, will need support to achieve this whilst delivering a just transition for workers and communities. Going forward, the work of PPCA’s Secretariat will be focused on helping the Alliance and its members to continue driving dialogue, sharing lessons learned and enabling more countries – particularly those most coal-dependent and outside the OECD – to develop effective coal phase-out strategies.    

ENDS 

Notes for editors 

For more information, or to interview a PPCA spokesperson attending COP27, please contact:  

Hannah Pearce (hannah.pearce@poweringpastcoal.org) Tel: +44 7841575677 or  

Fiona Lavroff (fiona.lavroff@poweringpastcoal.org) Tel:  +32 499711955 

PPCA was established at COP23 in 2017 and is co-chaired by Canada and the UK. Current membership totals 168 – including 48 national governments, 49 subnational governments (across 13 countries) and 71 other organisations. In addition, nineteen organisations partner the PPCA and contribute expertise from their network to help further the Alliance’s mission and work.  

*PPCA has today published Powering Past Coal –The state of global action to end emissions from coal powera progress report that features thirteen case studies illustrating the practical choices, pathways, and strategies pursued by diverse PPCA members to end emissions from coal power for good. Drawn from OECD and non-OECD countries within the PPCA’s membership the case studies span policy, social, technical, and financial solutions. They showcase the leadership required to overcome the system challenges that can arise when accelerating coal phase-out, but also to modernise electricity grids, shift investments towards clean energy, and drive a just transition creating new clean energy jobs.

All PPCA members endorse the PPCA Declaration (updated since COP26 to reflect the latest science). The 34 members who are financial institutions also commit to the PPCA’s Finance Principles (currently being refreshed in consultation with members to set the global standard for private finance coal policies, to translate the requirements for global coal phase-out into tangible actions for the financial sector). For more information about PPCA’s membership visit the PPCA website.  

Phasing coal out of the power sector is a crucial first step to keep temperatures from rising above 1.5C because coal remains the single biggest contributor to human-created climate change. Deep and rapid reductions in global coal emissions are required to keep on track for no more than 1.5C global warming. This requires an immediate end to the building of new unabated coal power plants, rapid scaling up of clean power and the retirement of existing coal fleets in advanced economies by 2030 and globally by 2040. 

The Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA) is a coalition of national and subnational governments, businesses and organisations taking action to advance the transition from unabated coal power generation to clean energy. Launched at COP23 in 2017, and playing a pivotal role at the forefront of global efforts to deliver the Paris Agreement, the Alliance works to: 

  • Secure commitments from governments and the private sector to phase out existing unabated coal power. 
  • Encourage a global moratorium on the construction of new unabated coal-fired power plants. 
  • Shift investment from coal to clean energy, including by working to end financing for coal-fired projects. 
  • Promote dialogue, share lessons and enable more countries (particularly those most coal-dependent and outside the OECD) to achieve coal phase-out in a sustainable and inclusive way, with appropriate support for workers and communities.