PPCA (Powering Past Coal Alliance)

The Powering Past Coal Alliance (PPCA) was launched by Canada and the United Kingdom at COP23 in Bonn in November 2017. It brings together national governments, subnational jurisdictions (states, provinces, cities), and private-sector members around a shared pledge to accelerate the transition away from unabated coal-fired electricity generation and to place a moratorium on new coal power without operational carbon capture and storage.

Members sign the PPCA Declaration, which commits government parties to phasing out existing traditional coal power and to a moratorium on any new traditional coal power stations without operational CCS. Businesses and other non-state members commit to powering their operations without coal. The Alliance is not a treaty; obligations are political rather than legally binding under international law, and timelines are interpreted in line with each member's national circumstances, though OECD and EU members are generally expected to align with a phase-out by 2030 and the rest of the world by 2040 to be consistent with Paris Agreement goals.

Founding members included Canada, the UK, France, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and several subnationals such as Washington State and Alberta. Membership has since expanded to include Germany, Chile, Poland (joined 2021 as a subnational-coordinated effort), and others. At COP26 in Glasgow (2021), the PPCA announced a significant expansion, and the broader Glasgow Climate Pact's language on "phasedown of unabated coal power" reflected PPCA advocacy, though that text was famously weakened from "phase-out" at India's intervention.

The PPCA Secretariat is co-led by the UK and Canadian governments. Critics note that the world's largest coal consumers — China, India, the United States, Japan, Australia, Indonesia, and South Africa — are not full national members, limiting the Alliance's direct emissions impact. Supporters argue its value lies in norm-setting, peer pressure, and providing a credible "coal exit" club that shapes finance and diplomatic signals.