China funds coal plants in Bosnia & Herzegovina amid vow to lower carbon emissions: Report

China has decided to move forward to finance coal power plants in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in spite of emphasising its pledges to reduce carbon emissions in a written address to the Conference of Parties (COP26) Climate Summit in Glasgow in November. According to a report published by Washington-based The Diplomat, Chinese-backed overseas coal projects with an additional of 10 Gigawatts of capacity are already in pipeline and are likely to commence construction any moment now. The ground has been prepared for the new coal-fired station Ugljevik III in the Baltic nation, being built by Chinese and Polish-Chinese firms.

The news come after China promised to prioritise a "green and low-carbon path to development" at the COP26 Climate Summit. Noting the importance of green transition, Chinese President Xi Jinping had also called for "concrete actions" to ensure a coordinated movement against climate change.

China planned power plans in several EU countries

Besides Ugljevik III, China has also planned new power plants in several other European towns. The report by The Diplomat states that there is a major risk of Chinese-funded power plants being built in Indonesia, the Philippines and Serbia. The projects have been announced in 2021 with and total estimated capacity of over 3,645 Megawatts. In Bosnia and Herzegovina alone China's Eximbank is financing a Tuzla 7 coal-fired powerplant. The construction of the project is imminent, notwithstanding a probe by European Union (EU) energy watchdog stating that the project breaches several EU laws.

"Every new power plant has an expected lifespan of 40–50 years. If put into operation, these plants will challenge international climate agreements such as the G-20 pledge and China-U.S. joint declaration at COP26," the researchers wrote in the report.

However, the construction of many of such Chinese-financed coal power plants have started without the necessary legal environment assessments and mandatory permits required by the host, researchers Wawa Wang and Nils Resare wrote in their report published in The Diplomat. There are several projects that are currently delayed due to legal challenges or impacts of environmental or social scandals. 

Ugljevik III is also associated with scandals as in June 2021, it was revealed that a secret contract for the plant was signed between a Chinese company and a Polish-Chinese firm. An energy analysis firm Just Finance later conducted a study to ascertain the environmental impact for Ugljevik III and Tuzla 7 and reported that there were false assumptions and serious errors that undermined legal requirements and transparency for acquiring environmental permits.

Meanwhile, the villagers living around the power plants have also compared their life to a "nightmare" after the entire community has been affected by unclear ash disposal and mining excavations over the last few years. Many houses in the area have begun to fall apart, while owners make efforts to stabilise them with new concrete.

(Image: AP (representative)