CREA: China’s Q3 CO2 fell ~3.1% y/y, largest quarterly drop since Covid; coal power and transport oil also down. | China Day chinaday.news
Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) lead analyst Lauri Myllyvirta wrote on Carbon Brief on 6 November that, based on official and commercial data, China’s CO2 emissions fell about 3.1% year on year in the third quarter of 2026—the largest quarterly drop since the 2022 Covid controls—with year-to-date emissions down an estimated 0.5%. Drivers included roughly 3.3% lower coal-power output, ~3% less coal use and ~4% less oil use, with transport oil down about 9%; solar, wind and nuclear added about 110 TWh, more than twice the rise in total electricity demand; coal-to-chemicals growth slowed and cement/steel emissions kept falling with construction. He told AFP oil use may partly rebound if prices ease, but the shock has accelerated electrification; Greenpeace East Asia’s Gao Yuhe said sustained coal-power declines are key for renewables. AFP, dpa/Keystone-SDA, Formosa TV and Handelsblatt among others carried the analysis. The node landed after the morning open, so the 10:00 slot logs it.
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