Renewables will lead global electricity generation growth

 About 85% of additional electricity demand through 2026 is set to come from developing economies, with China contributing substantially even as the country’s economy undergoes structural changes. 

Can China become carbon neutral by 2060?

The world's biggest polluter of greenhouse gases China  has pledged to go carbon neutral by 2060 during the United Nations General Assembly in New York  on Sep 22. It's the first time China has issued concrete plans to achieve net zero carbon dioxide emissions. If achieved, this could curb likely global warming by 0.2-0.3 Celsius this century.

China has not yet revealed details of how it will do this. But a research group at Tsinghua University presented a $15 trillion, 30-year road map on 27 September that calls for ending the use of coal for electricity generation around 2050, dramatically increasing nuclear and renewable power generation, and relying on electricity for 80% of China’s energy consumption by 2060.

Investments in clean energy by developing countries declined in 2018

Developing nations are moving toward cleaner power but not nearly fast enough to limit global CO2 emissions. Due to economic slowdown, investment in new wind, solar, and other non-large hydro renewables projects in China fell to $86 billion in 2018 from $122 billion in 2017. 

Financing of clean energy projects in India and Brazil also slipped $2.4 billion and $2.7 billion, respectively from the year prior.

China will spend on renewable energy over third of trillion dollars by 2020

China's National Energy Administration proposed plan to spend more than $360 billion through 2020 on renewable power sources like solar and wind. This will allow to create more than 13 million new jobs in the renewable energy sector, curb the growth of greenhouse gasses that contribute to global warming and reduce the amount of soot that creates strong smog in Beijing and other Chinese cities.
Thanks in part to Chinese manufacturing, costs in the wind and solar industries are decreasing fast, making them competitive with power generation from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. According to  Greenpeace, in 2015 China installed an average of more than one wind turbine every hour of every day, and covered the equivalent of one soccer field every hour with solar panels. Bloomberg New Energy Finance  estimates that China has invested $102bn in domestic renewable energy in 2015.
China surpassed the United States a decade ago as the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gasses, and now its GHG emissions are twice as big as in the U.S. Read more at https://www.nytimes.com

China led the world in renewable energy investments with share of 36% in 2015

A new report published by the UN Environment Programme, Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment 2016, reveals that all investment in renewables totaled $286 billion in 2015, around 3% higher than the previous record set back in 2011.

China's climate adaptation strategy is discussed

A group of Chinese climate experts gathered to talk about China's experience and strategy for climate change adaptation. China has made strides to adapt to global climate change based on scientific research in a well-organized way since 2004, including adjusting the country's agricultural structure as well as controlling soil erosion and the problems of an encroaching desert.

China dominates global clean energy market

Solar capacity in China has expanded almost five times since 2012, and about 17 percent of the world’s solar capacity now is in the country. China was the biggest renewables market in the world with 433 gigawatts of generating capacity at the end of 2014, more than double the U.S. in second place with 182 gigawatts.

China will launch the world’s largest national carbon trading program in 2017

The targeted industries in China include power generators, steel and cement producers, and other industrial sectors. Program will incentivize major polluters to reduce emissions by handing out a limited number of permits based on a national emissions cap.

The United States and China Joint Presidential Statement: Common Vision for an Ambitious Global Climate Agreement in Paris

The Joint Presidential Statement was made on the occasion of President Xi’s State Visit to Washington, D.C.and it includes significant domestic policy announcements and commitments to global climate finance. Statement builds on last November’s historic announcement by President Obama and President Xi of ambitious, respective post-2020 climate targets, describes a common vision for a new global climate agreement to be concluded in Paris this December.

China begins power sector reform and focuses on energy efficiency and renewables

In April  Chinese government issued four documents on power sector reform, which  outlined long-awaited upgrades to the functioning of the world's largest power utility. The reforms cover a number of important topics, including:

China CO2 reduction this year could equal UK total emissions over same period

Coal consumption in the world’s largest economy fell by almost 8% and CO2 emissions by around 5% in the first four months of the year, compared with the same period in 2014.  China’s coal use fell for the first time this century and government recently ordered more than 1,000 coal mines to close. This is very encouraging news on the eve  of crucial climate talks in Paris this year. Read more at http://energydesk.greenpeace.org/
Read also about China as world’s largest energy consumer and greenhouse gas emitter

A common EU-China approach will help make the Paris climate talks a success

Federica Mogherini. EU foreign policy chief, said in Beijin last weeek she's confident the EU and China can agree to a common approach on climate change. She praised China's targets for gradually reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and said the sides should be able to agree on other goals at an upcoming bilateral summit. China is the world's biggest emitter and has pledged to level off carbon emissions by around 2030. Read more at www.sunherald.com

 

The BRIC nations' response to climate change is critical to the fate of the planet

 The four largest developing economies – Brazil, Russia, India and China, collectively known as the BRICs – are critically important to the cause. These four countries, with a combined population of 3 billion people and a GDP of $16tn, will have a huge direct impact on global emissions.  Read more at http://www.theguardian.com

Top Chinese Meteorologist Warns Climate Change Will Have 'Huge Impact' On Country

"As the world warms, risks of climate change and climate disasters to China could become more grave," said  Zheng Guoguang, China Meteorological Administration (CMA) chief.
The CMA chief said climate change would seriously threaten big projects in the country, such as the Three Gorges Dam and a massive scheme geared toward diverting water from southern portions of China to areas north of the country to address water problems. Zheng called on China to take a development path that accommodates the aim of lowering carbon emissions, but he also pointed out that the use of solar and wind energy in the country has limited potential.
Along with the United States, China accounts for about 45 percent of total carbon dioxide emissions in the world.  Read more at http://www.techtimes.com/

Africa’s power sector offers ‘potentially attractive opportunities’

Using per-capita data, a US citizen on average uses 12,461 kilowatt hours of electricity per annum; a citizen of Ethiopia uses 52. On average, only 30% of Sub-Saharan Africa citizens have any access to electric power, and even where power is available, provision can be sporadic, with frequent power cuts and “brown-outs”.   A US government-sponsored initiative, Power Africa, is looking to provide financing and expertise to encourage investment links between businesses and African governments to develop smaller-scale, technologically innovative generation projects. The projects are slanted toward renewable energy solutions that utilise Africa’s abundant resources of solar, wind and geothermal power, but are not neglecting the growing potential of natural gas as the number of hydrocarbon discoveries across Africa multiplies. The Power Africa initiative has been ongoing for a little over a year, but additional funding announced at the US-Africa Leaders Summit in August 2014 has increased the potential budget for the operation to US$26bn in direct financing and investment guarantees. The China-supported dam building efforts, supplemented by other major projects, including proposed nuclear plants in South Africa and a major coal-fired power station in Zimbabwe, could potentially make a huge difference to Africa’s generating capacity. Read more at http://www.blackstarexodus.com

China Spawns Its Latest Renewable Energy Billionaire

Cao Renxian, chairman of China’s Sungrow Power Supply, has joined the ranks of the world’s renewable energy billionaires. Sungrow makes power supply equipment for the solar and wind power industries, mainly inverters and converters. Its revenue rose by 44% last year to 3 billion yuan, or $479 million. That helped to boost net profit to 291.7 million yuan, or $46.6 million, an increase of 61% from 2013. China’s richest man, Hanergy chairman Li Hejun, also hails from solar power industry. His flagship business, Hong Kong-listed Hanergy Thin-Film Power Group, boasts a market cap  six times that of top U.S. thin-film panel supplier First Solar. Read more at http://www.forbes.com

The US-China climate agreement opens doors for futher global progress

President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping reached a landmark deal in November to cut carbon emissions by 2030, the first such deal China has ever signed. Together, two nations are  responsible for 40 percent of global emissions  Read more >>>
PRI

How Ukraine Is Changing Global Energy Flows

Increasingly isolated by the crisis, Russia is looking East for new energy markets. On September 1, 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese Premier Zhang Gaoli initiated the construction of what they claim will be “the world’s largest construction project.” This 3,968 km “Power of Siberia” pipeline connecting gas fields between Russian’s Siberia and China’s Northeast region is expected deliver four trillion cubic meters of gas to China over the next thirty years. Read more ...
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