Twenty-five countries, most of them wealthy, pledged on Wednesday not to open any more coal-fired power stations without carbon capture equipment, in the hope of leading other countries towards the end of coal.
The UK, which has just closed its last coal-fired power station, Canada, France, Germany and Australia, a major coal producer, signed the voluntary appeal at the UN Climate Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Belgium is one of the signatories, but it closed its last coal-fired power station several years ago. On the other hand, China, India and the United States did not sign the pledge.
The countries have pledged that their next climate plans will not include any new coal-fired power stations without CO2 capture. However, the commitment does not oblige them to stop mining or exporting coal.
When burnt, coal emits more CO2 into the atmosphere than oil and gas, but its use continues to increase worldwide.
"The commitment to launch the transition away from fossil fuels must be translated into real action on the ground," said Wopke Hoekstra, the European Commission's climate officer, who signed the appeal.
New coal projects "must stop," said UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, who was also present in Baku.
The signature of the commitment by Australia, whose government - in power since 2022 - is ambitious on climate, was welcomed by NGOs.
"The coal door has been closed. Now we have to lock it," Erin Ryan of the Australian branch of the Climate Action Network told French news agency AFP in Baku.
Angola, Uganda and Ethiopia are among the other signatories of the commitment, developed with the ‘Powering Past Coal’ alliance.
