Pulling the plug on fossils in power

The briefing evaluates 16 countries against 1.5°C-aligned power sector benchmarks, finding that no assessed country is fully on track. It argues for a global phase-out of coal and fossil gas by 2040, noting that while some countries are making progress on coal, there is a critical lack of explicit fossil gas phase-out plans and insufficient renewable energy acceleration globally.

• To limit warming to 1.5°C, developed countries must phase out coal by 2030 and unabated gas by 2035, while developing countries must phase out both by 2040. This transition requires renewables to provide over 80% of electricity by 2035 and 90-100% by 2050.
• None of the 16 assessed countries are fully on track for the necessary power sector shift. While the UK is on track to phase out coal by 2024, and the US and UK have 2035 decarbonisation targets aligned with unabated gas phase-out, further action is required to achieve these goals.
• There is a systemic lack of explicit fossil gas phase-out plans across the analysed countries, with the fossil gas pipeline currently exceeding that of coal. Additionally, China's continued permitting of coal plants is identified as a significant concern for global emissions.
• Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is deemed to have no role in coal generation and only a marginal role in fossil gas power. Consequently, the document argues that the UAE, as COP President, should secure a global agreement to phase out fossil gas by 2040.
• International climate finance and Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) are essential for the 2040 global phase-out, particularly for coal-reliant countries with high renewable potential like Morocco.

APA

NewClimate Institute (2023). Pulling the plug on fossils in power. https://newclimate.org/resources/publications/climate-action-tracker-briefing-pulling-the-plug-on-fossils-in-power

Chicago

NewClimate Institute. Pulling the plug on fossils in power. 2023. https://newclimate.org/resources/publications/climate-action-tracker-briefing-pulling-the-plug-on-fossils-in-power.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=NewClimate Institute |title=Pulling the plug on fossils in power |date=19 September 2023 |url=https://newclimate.org/resources/publications/climate-action-tracker-briefing-pulling-the-plug-on-fossils-in-power |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{newclimateinstitute2023pulling, author = {{NewClimate Institute}}, title = {{Pulling the plug on fossils in power}}, institution = {NewClimate Institute}, year = {2023}, month = sep, url = {https://newclimate.org/resources/publications/climate-action-tracker-briefing-pulling-the-plug-on-fossils-in-power}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }