China's coal story poses a problem for Canberra | The Australian

On ABC TV's Q & A on Monday night, the Prime Minister implied coal-based energy in China was being replaced by wind-generated power. If only. The facts tell a different story. China may be closing down its "dirty coal-fired power generation" facilities, but that doesn't mean it is using less coal. Rather, every kilowatt hour of electricity saved from the old stations has been more than replaced by power from a coal-powered station using newer technology. Hydro, nuclear, wind and solar will reduce the proportion of electricity China generates using coal -- but not the overall amount. Under China's latest five-year plan, nuclear power will increase four-fold to 40 gigawatts; hydroelectric capacity will grow by 63GW; gas-fired generation by 22GW; wind power will more than double with an extra 48GW; and solar capacity will grow to 5GW. The figures pale against the extra 260GW of coal-fired power that will be produced.
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It is the developing world's need for energy that has motivated many in the West to try to use climate change policies to redistribute the world's wealth. This flawed agenda was exposed at the failed 2009 Copenhagen climate summit. For low-consumption advocates and far-left Greens, carbon reduction is about slowing capitalism and enabling Third World countries to catch up. This won't work. Nor is it good economic policy to use household compensation for the carbon tax as a proxy for more welfare. The Prime Minister must resist any temptation to mix economic and social policy. She must drop the generalisations about China's efforts and start getting down to specifics about her tax.