20 companies join international alliance pledging to phase out coal
20 new companies have joined the pledge of 26 nations to phase out coal in a bid to combat global warming.
The new companies who have joined the “Powering Past Coal Alliance” include Unilever, EDF, and Iberdrola.
During a climate summit held by Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, the alliance agreed that coal power should be phased out of rich nations by 2030, with a target of 2050 for remaining countries.
The alliance was launched in November by 19 governments, and already featured companies such as BT, ENGIE, Kering, Diageo, Marks & Spencer, Orsted, Storebrand and Virgin Group.
SEE ALSO:
New nations have also joined the initiative, including Norway, Ethiopia, and Latvia – as well as the state of California, US.
The goals set to completely phase out the use of coal, for both consumption and energy generation, were inline with the 195-nation Paris Climate Agreement.
The pledge argues that coal could be used, however, if for instance greenhouse gas emissions were captured and buried.
Almost 40% of global electricity is provided by coal-fired generators, and big coal users such as China, the US, India, and Russia, have not joined the agreement.
