The British insurer Prudential is working with the Asian Development Bank on a scheme to buy out coal-fired power plants in Asia in order to shut them down within 15 years. Its backers say the plan is designed to limit use of the polluting fossil fuel while allowing workers time to find new jobs and incentivising countries to invest in clean energy alternatives. “This is especially [true] in Asia, where existing coal fleets are big and young and will otherwise operate for decades. Otherwise, this is just HSBC trying to make money from both ends of the climate catastrophe,” he said. HSBC has vowed to phase out coal financing by 2040 but participated earlier this year in a $400m (£290m) loan to the Indonesian coal company Adaro Energy, which produced 54m tonnes of coal in 2020.

Source: The Guardian August 03, 2021 13:25 UTC