Phasing Out Coal, Phasing In Justice: Roadmap for Financing Responsible Regional Coal Phase-Out in Asia

Fair Finance Asia and I-JET’s 2026 report examines coal phase-out policies, coal financing and just transition pathways across Asia, with detailed analysis of six Southeast Asian countries. It assesses financial flows, sustainable finance taxonomies, early coal retirement mechanisms and social safeguards while proposing a Paris-aligned framework for governments and financial institutions to support a responsible coal phase-out. Report_Phasing-out-coal-phasing…

Fair Finance Asia (FFA) and Influencing Just Energy Transition in the ASEAN (I-JET)202624 Sept 2026

PublisherFair Finance Asia (FFA) and Influencing Just Energy Transition in the ASEAN (I-JET)

Year2026

RegionAPAC

FormatPDF, 10.5 MB

3views

Key Takeaways

Coal project financing across the assessed Asian countries fell sharply from 10 coal power plants and 30 individual units in 2020 to two plants and seven units in 2025. The study identified 128 financier involvements between 2020 and 2025, of which 56% came from international sources. Report_Phasing-out-coal-phasing…
A total of 35,779.5 MW of coal capacity received financing since 2020; 14,890 MW is now operational, 2,000 MW has been shelved and 18,889.5 MW remains in the regional development pipeline.
Loans represented the dominant source of disclosed coal project finance, totaling approximately USD 23.58 billion and 82% of disclosed financing value between 2020 and 2025. Equity accounted for USD 3.45 billion, refinancing loans USD 1.84 billion and bonds about USD 30 million. Report_Phasing-out-coal-phasing…
The report proposes a seven-step coal phase-out framework for financial institutions, beginning with an immediate prohibition on support for coal expansion and a commitment to phase out thermal coal exposure globally by 2040, followed by client transition planning, engagement, early-retirement finance, social safeguards and transparent reporting.
A responsible coal transition should include worker income support and reskilling, regional economic diversification, land rights and FPIC, gender-responsive measures, affordable energy access and protections for civic participation and rights defenders, according to the report’s just transition framework.