Translation Tag: clean energy
The CCP Politburo holds “collective study sessions” on a semi-regular basis, in which an outside academic or government expert leads a discussion on a selected topic. Such sessions are important signals as to what issues the senior leadership finds important. The 12th collective study session of the 20th Central Committee Politburo was held on February 29, 2024 and was presided over by Xi Jinping. At this session, Xi delivered a speech emphasizing the need to improve China’s energy security through the development and deployment of clean energy technologies. These efforts will enable China, Xi posits, to achieve sustainable growth at home and become a leader in combating climate change globally.
In this roundtable, scholars from Fudan University and several invited guests debate the degree of convergence between U.S. and EU outlooks on China, the likely trajectory of EU trade and investment ties with China, and what type of role the EU should play in China’s international strategy going forward. Most of the scholars argue that Europe-China relations have deteriorated over the past years. However, many appear optimistic that there is considerable room for EU-China cooperation going forward, on matters from the green energy transition, to supporting developing countries weather shocks from COVID-19, to the Ukraine war. On the Russia-Ukraine war, one scholar suggests that a “substantial push by China to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict would help greatly to improve China-EU relations,” while others suggest that the degree to which the EU leads a resolution will be a “weathervane of its strategic autonomy” and determine whether the EU can avoid being marginalized in China’s foreign strategy.
A scholar from Tongji University argues that while Europe is increasingly emphasizing systemic rivalry with China, there is still “potential for deepening high-level cooperation” because many of China’s policy priorities (including ensuring food security, improving supply chain resilience and security, achieving self-reliance in science and technology, and boosting innovative capabilities) “share a common language” with those of the European Union. As a result, she argues that Europe should jettison what she refers to as its “Cold War mentality” and achieve “ideological independence,” so that China and the EU can work collectively to “inject more certainty, security, and development momentum into the world.”
In response to economic uncertainty and instability in China brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine crisis, this State Council Notice outlines several measures aimed at stabilizing the economy, including adjustments to fiscal and monetary policies, as well as directives to secure supply chains and energy supplies. Notices such as these are promulgated to all levels of government throughout the country as policy directives.
This excerpt from a lengthy news report, written in April 2022, examines the global energy market amid the Russia-Ukraine war and takeaways for China. The author suggests that “although the Russia-Ukraine conflict is far from Asia, the global energy market is unitary in nature.” He argues that high oil prices are a “further warning of the importance of diversifying energy supplies for energy security.”
This article, published by a Sinopec-affiliated journal, a Party official calls for China to promote a “Petro-RMB” and the construction of a “new order of global energy governance.”
A senior economist from the state-owned Sinochem conglomerate argues that in face of what he sees as an increasingly unstable geopolitical situation, China should increase its investments in renewable energy.
The National Energy Administration calls for strengthening energy reserves and preparing China’s energy sector to transition to more non-fossil energy sources. These Opinions are disseminated to all relevant provincial-level agencies to guide and help implement energy policies throughout the year.
In this article appearing in the state-backed The Paper (澎湃), several experts offer opinions on how the recently announced “Opinions on Accelerating the Construction of a National Unified Market” will impact energy supply and costs.
The chief economist at a state-owned energy investment firm argues that in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, China must diversify its energy sources, increase its energy independence, and promote the use of the RMB for pricing and settling international energy transactions.