The End of an Era: China's Coal Power Stations Face Billions in Losses as the

Coal-Fired Power Boom Fizzles Out

(Scene opens)
Visuals:

A striking slow-motion image of a coal train rushing toward a huge coal plant. The air seems final as we
witness black coal dust leaking from packed trolleys. The train stops unexpectedly as it gets closer to the
station. The coal plant's machinery comes to a dead halt. silence

Narrator( in deep tone)

"It was supposed to last forever—coal, the black gold that drove China’s journey to industrial splendor.
The wheels are no longer rotating, though. The once-booming coal power plants that powered the
second-biggest economy in the world are about to go extinct. Lost billions of money. An age
disappearing."

(cut to): images of contemporary Chinese cities, featuring towers sparkling in the distance. Behind the
glossy exterior, however, piles of financial papers reveal red writing and billions of lost money.

Narrator (dramatically):

China's coal-fired power empire is about to face financial consequences. The question isn’t just ‘what
went wrong?’ What's happening is...

Part 1: The Explosion of Coal: A Financial Crisis

[Visuals]: Stunning capture from the early 2000s, showcasing China's countryside as coal plants
proliferate like mushrooms. Cities throb with activity, manufacturers produce items at breakneck speed,
and smoke rises to the heavens.

Narrator:

"Let's go back in time. Coal was more than simply a source of energy twenty years ago; it was the spark
that propelled China to worldwide hegemony. More than half of the coal plants in the world by 2015
were located in China, where they generated power for millions of people's homes, workplaces, and
factories. It was the economic miracle's beating heart.

[Cut to]: a busy power plant. Workers going quickly. Sparks flying. Energy meters in an upsurge

Narrator:

"These enormous plants were built with billions of dollars. They kept China's industries operating day
and night and served as the nation's growth engine. The world has never witnessed a power revolution
like this one."
Visuals: A Chinese laborer wearing a hard hat smiled brightly while keeping an eye on the plant's
activities. The scene goes black, then gradually turns grey.
"But as the coal-fired juggernaut grew, so did the cost," the narrator says in a sharpening tone.

Cut to: A split screen with coal plants producing dense black smoke on one side and the soaring skylines
of cities like Beijing and Shanghai on the other. There is no denying the difference.

Narrator (in an intense voice): "The same fuel that fuelled China’s rise was contaminating its skies."

Visuals: images of people demonstrating for clean air, streets covered in pollution, kids wearing masks,
and news channels with headlines screaming "Airpocalypse."

Narrator:

The cost of coal was expressed not just in yuan but also in terms of lives and health. For millions of
Chinese people, pollution has become an unavoidable reality."

Part 2: The Turning Point]

Visuals: Chinese leaders during an international conference. The Paris Agreement is signed. The pledge
to cut emissions is currently up for discussion. Everyone on Earth observes.

Narrator (sudden change to optimistic):

China was at a crossroads in 2015. It had to decide whether to welcome the new era of sustainable
energy or stick with the destructive coal-fired course. China made a risky decision."

Visuals] : A time-lapse showing wind turbines whirling along the coast, solar farms emerging in the
Xinjiang desert, and renewable energy surpassing coal

Narrator:

The nation began the largest-ever drive towards renewable energy. China became the world leader in
renewable energy overnight as a result of the rapid development of wind farms, solar farms, and
innovative technology."

[Cut to]: A vast array of wind turbines rotating in opposition to the setting sun.

(Narrator saying with pride):

China is currently the world's top producer of solar energy. However, as renewable energy sources made
the future brighter, the coal giants started to fail."

[Part 3: Coal’s Collapse]

[Visuals]: an aerial view of a huge coal facility that appears deserted and abandoned. It's cold in the
chimneys. Weeds growing via the concrete's gaps.

Narrator in a serious tone:

“This is the point at when the story abruptly changes. Nobody was able to halt the declining trend of
coal power”.
Cut to]: Dust-caked machinery, bare control rooms, poorly lighted offices with wrinkled financial
documents and papers.

Narrator (voice rising in tension):

In actuality, a large number of China's coal-fired power stations are destroyed. The industry was struck
by overcapacity like a wrecking ball. Plants worth billions of dollars are sitting idle and operating at half
capacity or less."

Visuals:

graphs and charts illustrating the declining demand for coal-fired electricity, plant closures, and the
decline in energy production.

Narrator:

With the shift in the energy mix, coal is losing ground. These factories are already losing money; losses of
about 130 billion dollars are projected. The surge in coal-fired power has become an expensive
nightmare."

[Cut to]: A meeting full of unhappy executives discussing plant shutdowns and passing around reports
bearing the large red ink word "Losses"

Narrator (echoing their urgency):

For China’s energy giants, this isn’t just a minor setback—it’s an existential crisis."

[Visuals]: Workers at a power plant standing outside, gazing at neglected coal hills behind them and
wondering what comes next.

Part 4: What Comes Next?]

Visuals: Split screen: modern solar panels and wind turbines on one side, an old coal plant in damage on
the other.

Narrator (optimistic):

What then is ahead for us? China is placing significant bets on future technologies as coal declines. The
next chapter in China's energy history is being written, and it will be powered by the sun and wind, with
massive solar farms and state-of-the-art energy storage."

Cut to : Images of futuristic scenes with endless solar panels, huge battery systems, and electric cars
driving through urban streets.

Narrator:

"By 2060, the Chinese government promises to be carbon neutral. Their goal is not only to phase out
coal but also to completely reimagine the global energy system.

Visuals: Researchers in labs, investors at renewable energy seminars, and new projects being introduced.

Narrator (excited, fast-paced):

The great part is that as each coal plant closes, other opportunities arise. Innovation in renewable
energy is quickly centring in China. What was once the issue—coal—might actually be the sparkplug for
a more intelligent, greener future."

[Closing Scene]

Visuals: A drone video showing wind turbines and solar farms flying over a rural area before cutting to a
nighttime metropolitan skyline fully powered by renewable energy sources.

Narrator (with energy and hope):

"A new era is dawning for China; the disappearance of coal does not mean the end of Chinese power."
Cleaner cities and skies, as well as a future unbound by the noxious energy of the past. The green
revolution in China is just getting started. There is still a boom. It's just getting started again, but without
the smoke this time."

[Fade to black]

Narrator (calmly):

Though an era is coming to a close, what about the future? It's shining harder than before."

[Text on screen]:
"The End of an Era. The Start of a Revolution."

Sources & links:

1. https://youtu.be/MCLOxYkx2pA?si=wd2Q0HBidfKlZdYy
2. https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/11/12/china-coal-climate-change-carbon-emissions-pledge-
plants-apec/
3. And I have added some information from newspaper articles

Contact details:

Name: Jiya Arya

Mob:6232225948

Email: [email protected]