Most additions made to the coal industry in China last year involved plants with improved levels of safety and efficiency to replace high-energy-consuming and outdated facilities built during the 20th century, industry experts said.

Lin Boqiang, head of the China Institute for Studies in Energy Policy at Xiamen University, said, "The nation consumed more coal and built more coal capacity last year, with most of the newly installed capacity replacing obsolete facilities and ensuring sufficient energy supplies amid the country's green transition.

"This year, the replacement of outdated coal capacity has accelerated, and the government has also taken steps in recent years to increase advanced coal production to ensure sufficient power supply, with the aim of coal playing a larger role as an emergency backup power source."

A green energy transition does not mean shutting down all coal plants overnight, Lin said.

Energy security must always come first, and the exit process should be prioritized. For example, if local heat and electricity supply cannot keep pace with demand for a time, there is no reason to close production facilities, Lin said.

He added that phasing out the use of coal in China is "more of a gradual and sophisticated process, rather than applying an emergency brake".

Statistics from financial media outlet Yicai show that by March 9, authorities in Hunan, Heilongjiang, Anhui, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Shandong and Hubei provinces had closed more than 90 coal power units as part of plans to phase out coal-fired plants in 2022 and this year. Most of this outdated capacity involves smaller units.

On the other hand, many of the nation's newly approved coal-fired projects comprise large generating units to meet future growth in power demand and large-scale access to new energy sources.

In December, China Three Gorges Corp launched a multibillion-dollar renewable and fossil-fuel energy project in Inner Mongolia autonomous region, consisting of 8 gigawatts of solar power and 4 GW of wind power capacity, as well as 4 GW of coal-fired power capacity, plus energy storage.

The project is expected to ensure steady power output and grid operation. The fluctuating output of renewable energy and coal can also help supplement wind and solar power during times of peak demand. Last year, China's peak capacity hit a record 1,290 GW, a rise of nearly 20 percent from two years earlier.

On completion, the project will deliver about 40 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region every year. More than half of this total will comprise clean energy — equivalent to saving about 6 million metric tons of standard coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by about 16 million tons.

Luo Zuoxian, head of intelligence and research at the Sinopec Economics and Development Research Institute, said coal, a primary energy source for China, will ensure secure energy supplies.

He added that carbon peaking and carbon neutrality are not incompatible with energy security. The reliance on coal is temporary, as emerging forms of green power generation have not been able to cover all the growth in demand, but coal consumption will start to decline year-on-year.

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