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An Assessment of India’s Energy Choices: Financial Performance and Risk Perception
The report finds that India's renewable energy power sector has historically been less risky and more lucrative than the fossil fuel sector, with higher risk-adjusted returns. Investor perceptions align with this, viewing renewables as safer, though solar is perceived as less risky than wind. The primary drivers of risk for both sectors are counterparty risk (specifically DISCOM non-payment), grid/transmission inadequacy, and financial sector constraints. Fossil fuel investments face additional significant risks from power market volatility and resource uncertainty, particularly for natural gas.
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Document type: Report
Biaya Kesehatan dari Batubara di Indonesia
The report analyzes the health and economic costs of coal in Indonesia, highlighting that coal-related air pollution causes thousands of premature deaths and significant financial burdens on low-income households. It argues that the Indonesian government's continued subsidies for coal production and power plants contradict public health goals and that transitioning to cheaper renewable energy would reduce these burdens.
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Document type: Report
Capacity payments: The final ingredient to supercharge coal
The document warns that without a 550gCO2/kWh limit on capacity payments, Europe's 256 operational coal plants could be 'supercharged', potentially extending their design life from 40 to 60 years. It identifies multiple EU policy gaps—including low carbon prices, biomass co-firing, and mining cross-subsidies—that already favour coal. The author contends that poorly designed capacity markets risk crowding out flexible, low-carbon alternatives like batteries and demand-side response, arguing that clean capacity is already cheaper than extending old coal plants.
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Document type: Briefing
A METHODOLOGY TO ESTIMATE WATER DEMAND FOR THERMAL POWER PLANTS IN DATA-SCARCE REGIONS USING SATELLITE IMAGES
The World Resources Institute developed a three-step method to estimate thermal power plant water demand: identifying cooling and fuel types via satellite images, assigning water-use factors from empirical data, and calculating total use based on net generation. Tested on 200 U.S. plants, the method achieved 90% precision in cooling and 89% in fuel identification, though water demand estimation precision was lower at 69%. The authors note limitations regarding image resolution, the inability to distinguish specific generation technologies within a fuel type, and the reliance on U.S.-based water-use factors which may vary globally.
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Document type: Research paper
ENERGIZING FINANCE: UNDERSTANDING THE LANDSCAPE 2018
The report finds that while electricity access finance in 20 high-impact countries increased by 56% to USD 30.2 billion per year in 2015-16, it remains far below the estimated USD 52 billion needed annually. Investment is heavily skewed toward non-residential consumers and grid-connected technologies, including a significant increase in coal-fired power. Sub-Saharan Africa is falling further behind, receiving only 17% of total electricity finance. Clean cooking finance is described as 'abysmally low', dropping 5% to USD 30 million in 2015-16, representing a tiny fraction of the USD 4.4 billion annual need. The report highlights India as a 'bright spot' due to strong domestic private investment in renewables and Indonesia for its use of government subsidies to accelerate LPG adoption.
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Document type: Executive summary
Ten key short-term sectoral benchmarks to limit warming to 1.5°C
The report establishes ten sectoral benchmarks for 2020–2025 to align with the 1.5°C goal of the Paris Agreement, emphasizing the need for large-scale technology diffusion and sector transformations over marginal efficiency gains. Key targets include a total ban on new coal power plants, a 30% reduction in emissions from the existing coal fleet by 2025, and ensuring all new buildings are fossil-free and near-zero energy by 2020.
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Document type: Report
INSIDER: The Climate Effect of the Trump Administration
The document analyzes the potential impact of the Trump administration's reversal of climate policies, such as the repeal of the Clean Power Plan, on U.S. emissions. It synthesizes data from seven organizations, estimating that 2025 emissions under Trump's policies would range from 5.6 to 6.8 GtCO2e, exceeding the U.S. Paris Agreement target. It also examines the potential for states, cities, and companies—represented by the 'We Are Still In' campaign—to offset these increases through clean energy transitions and local policy defense.
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Document type: Briefing
Join the Powering Past Coal Alliance
The We Mean Business coalition is calling for private sector companies to sign the Powering Past Coal Alliance declaration, joining over 25 countries, states, and regions in accelerating the phase-out of traditional coal power. The coalition emphasizes that coal plants produce nearly 40% of global electricity and are a primary driver of climate change and negative health effects. The document advocates for a 'just transition' to clean energy to help limit global temperature increases to well below 2°C, and preferably 1.5°C, urging companies to sign the declaration before the One Planet Summit on December 12, 2017.
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Document type: Statement
Why we need to stand as one globally to combat climate change
The statement by Friends of the Earth International characterizes the current climate situation as a 'planetary emergency' and criticizes the Paris Agreement for lacking legal enforcement and science-based cuts. It calls for the immediate end of fossil fuels—noting that over 1600 new coal plants are planned in 62 countries—and warns against 'false solutions' such as nuclear power and large-scale hydroelectric projects. The document advocates for a just transition where developed countries, whose 10% population is responsible for 50% of emissions, lead deep cuts and fund sustainable development in the global South. It promotes decentralized, people-centered community energy, agroecology, and community forest management as the only viable future.
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Document type: Statement
THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY’S GRID RESILIENCE PRICING PROPOSAL: A COST ANALYSIS
The research note analyzes four implementation scenarios for the DOE's Grid Resilience Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR), which would compensate coal and nuclear plants for costs not recovered in wholesale markets. The analysis finds that annual customer costs could range from $311 million to $10.6 billion, with a high concentration of benefits accruing to a small number of companies, particularly in the PJM region.
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Document type: Research paper
DOE grid study a prelude to polluter bailout
Friends of the Earth criticizes a Department of Energy grid reliability study for omitting climate change and advocating for expedited permitting for coal and nuclear infrastructure, which the organization views as a bailout for non-competitive, dirty energy sources.
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Document type: Statement
ESKOM INQUIRY REFERENCE BOOK
The document details the systematic repurposing of Eskom's governance to facilitate large-scale corruption by a politically connected elite, specifically the Gupta family. It highlights the hollowing out of technical expertise through biased board and executive appointments, leading to irregular procurement in coal, IT, and infrastructure. Key cases include the awarding of overpriced contracts to Tegeta and the use of Trillian as a consultancy conduit. The authors argue that these failures have compromised Eskom's financial sustainability and South Africa's economic growth, recommending structural reforms and the unbundling of the utility.
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Document type: Briefing
Open letter to EU Environment Ministers on ETS funds
Carbon Market Watch and 30 partner organizations call on EU Environment Ministers to prevent the use of ETS funds, specifically Article 10c and the Modernisation Fund, for coal power subsidies. They advocate for a 450gCO2/kWh investment eligibility criterion to exclude coal, strong governance for the Modernisation Fund involving the European Investment Bank and Member States, and the establishment of a Just Transition Fund to align EU policy with the Paris Agreement.
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Document type: Statement
El Banco Asiático de Desarrollo debe poner fin a su cincuentenaria adicción al carbón
The statement criticizes the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for continuing to fund coal infrastructure despite acknowledging climate change as a threat to poverty mitigation. It highlights the Tata Mundra Ultra Mega Coal plant in India as a primary example of environmental and social harm and calls for the removal of the ADB's legal immunity to allow affected communities to seek justice.
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Document type: Statement
Deep Dive: What do current policy developments in China, India and the US mean
The document argues that renewable energy investments in China, India, and the US must increase significantly—doubling in China and the US and tripling in India—to meet Paris Agreement warming limits. While China and India are rapidly expanding renewable capacity and moving away from coal, the US faces worsening federal policy ambition despite strong state-level support for renewables.
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Document type: Briefing
Formal comments on the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) Update Assumptions, Base Case and Observations 2016
The CSIR's analysis of South Africa's Draft IRP 2016 concludes that a 'Least Cost' scenario—prioritising solar PV, wind, and flexible power—is significantly cheaper, creates more jobs, and emits less CO2 than the government's Base Case and Carbon Budget scenarios. The report argues that the Draft IRP 2016 imposes annual new-build constraints on solar and wind without techno-economic justification, which artificially inflates costs and pushes the system toward new coal or nuclear investment. By 2050, the CSIR finds that a renewable energy share of over 70% is cost-optimal. Technical assessments on system inertia and transmission infrastructure indicate that the costs of maintaining stability in a high-renewable system are low, representing less than 1% of total power generation costs.
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Document type: Report
Open letter to EU Environment Ministers on the revision of the EU ETS
A coalition of 31 networks and organizations calls on EU Environment Ministers to reform the EU ETS by excluding coal investments from the Modernization Fund and article 10c, maintaining the 2013 base year for eligibility to prevent lignite plant subsidies in Greece, and establishing a Just Transition Fund.
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Document type: Statement
A new era of ambitious global climate action
The Paris Agreement entered into force on 4 November 2016, with 100 countries representing 67% of global greenhouse gas emissions having ratified it. COP22 and the first meeting of the CMA are tasked with developing operational rules for transparency, progress monitoring, and ramping up ambition to limit global temperature rise to well below 2 degrees Celsius. Key points of contention include the verification of national commitments and the insufficiency of pledges to meet the $100 billion climate finance goal for developing countries by 2020. South Africa has ratified the agreement and set an emissions reduction target of 398–614 MtCO2e for 2025–2030, though this is largely conditional on external assistance and complicated by a continued reliance on coal and budgetary restraints.
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Document type: Briefing
An Assessment of the Financial Sustainability of the Electricity Sector in Rajasthan
The report finds that while Rajasthan has successfully increased its generation capacity and improved reliability, its distribution companies (discoms) face a severe financial crisis. Discoms are unable to recover operating costs through tariffs, leading to mounting debt and a heavy reliance on state government fiscal transfers. Although renewable energy capacity has grown rapidly, investment gaps in transmission and distribution (T&D) infrastructure hinder the integration of these sources and the achievement of comprehensive rural electrification.
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Document type: Report
2015 EU ETS Emissions analysis from EC data
The 2015 EU ETS emissions fell by 0.6% to 1802mt, driven by a 0.6% decrease in power and heat emissions and a 0.3% decrease in industrial emissions. Notable national trends include a 23% drop in UK coal power emissions and an 11% increase in Netherlands power emissions due to new coal plants. The report highlights a long-term trend of renewables displacing fossil fuels in the European power sector.
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Document type: Report