The UK’s coal phaseout: a milestone but not the end of the journey

The UK became the first G7 country to phase out coal power on September 30, 2024, with the closure of the Ratcliffe-on-Soar plant. However, the author contends that this domestic achievement is contradicted by the actions of UK financial institutions, which provided US$6.5 billion to the global coal industry between 2021 and 2023. The document calls for stronger financial regulations to end coal expansion funding and redirect capital toward renewable energy and early decommissioning.

• The United Kingdom officially became the first G7 nation to phase out coal power on September 30, 2024, following the shutdown of the Ratcliffe-on-Soar plant, achieving its target one year earlier than planned.
• The UK's domestic transition away from coal was driven by a combination of climate policies, regulatory frameworks, carbon pricing, grid infrastructure improvements, and the growth of wind power.
• Global coal transition is lagging, with only 15% of global coal capacity currently on track for closure in alignment with the 1.5°C goal, and 2023 marking the lowest number of plant retirements in over a decade.
• UK financial institutions continue to fund the global coal industry, contributing US$6.5 billion between 2021 and 2023; Barclays is identified as the largest European banker of coal expansion, supporting entities like Glencore and Adani Group.
• Commercial banks globally provided US$470 billion to the coal industry from 2021 to 2023, with US and Japanese banks being the top lenders among G7 members. Specifically, Japanese banks Mizuho ($8.1 billion), MUFG ($6.1 billion), and SMBC ($4.7 billion) dominated international coal lending and bond facilitation.

APA

Martin, L. (2024). The UK’s coal phaseout: a milestone but not the end of the journey. Reclaim Finance. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2024/10/08/the-uks-coal-phaseout-a-milestone-but-not-the-end-of-the-journey/

Chicago

Martin, Léo. The UK’s coal phaseout: a milestone but not the end of the journey. Reclaim Finance, 2024. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2024/10/08/the-uks-coal-phaseout-a-milestone-but-not-the-end-of-the-journey/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Martin |first1=Léo |title=The UK’s coal phaseout: a milestone but not the end of the journey |publisher=Reclaim Finance |date=8 October 2024 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2024/10/08/the-uks-coal-phaseout-a-milestone-but-not-the-end-of-the-journey/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{martin2024uks, author = {Martin, Léo}, title = {{The UK’s coal phaseout: a milestone but not the end of the journey}}, publisher = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2024}, month = oct, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/en/2024/10/08/the-uks-coal-phaseout-a-milestone-but-not-the-end-of-the-journey/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }