Late May saw the release of a consultation draft of China’s 2020 Green Bond Catalogue. It removes controversial coal investments such as “clean” coal use, coal-fired power, coal mining and coal washing, bringing China into closer alignment with international standards. The move has been praised widely, both at home and abroad.

Released by China’s central bank (the People’s Bank of China, or PBOC), the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the new catalogue may also unify various green bond standards used in China.

But critics have pointed out that it could be far greener. It still includes, for example, a considerable number of oil and gas-related projects as well as large-scale hydropower.

The original consultation period concluded on 12 June, but curiously a new notice of public consultation appeared on PBOC’s website on 8 July, extending the period to 6 August. A few changes have been made to the earlier version of the draft catalogue, including the addition of “integrated management of coal-mining subsidence areas”. Coal production and utilisation remain removed from the list.

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