“The only reason to build a coal fired plant anywhere in the world outside the US is that you can’t get a nuclear plant in the time frame desired or you have a staunchly anti nuclear population.”
Malaysia is building coal plants because they have coal. Cut a new road through the hills, you find a coal seam. The haze from the coal plants if anything cools the local climate mid day and warms it at night, which is a bonus in the tropics. The CO2 boosts crop production. A plus all around.
The one negative from the power plants is the increase in corrosion due to increased CO2. Many people think that O2 is what causes steel and iron to rust. It isn’t. It is CO2 and H2O that catalyze the oxidation of iron.