China's rise as a global leader in renewable energy and its implications for developing countries such as Pakistan
2024-06-05
Renewable energy is energy extracted from natural resources and can be replenished over time, with minimal or even zero damage and consumption to life and natural resources. These energy sources include solar energy (from the sun), wind energy (from the wind), tidal energy (from waves), hydro energy (from water), biomass energy (from organic matter such as wood, crops, and waste), geothermal energy (from nuclear heat), etc., which are distributed in one or more forms around the world. For example, hydrogen (from water and other renewable resources) is one of the renewable energy sources. Hydrogen can be used for renewable electricity with almost zero damage to the climate and environment. On the one hand, this type of energy is sustainable, unlike fossil fuels, which are scarce and cause significant damage to the climate; On the other hand, fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas are produced through long-term natural processes and cannot be quickly replenished. The inventory of fossil fuels will eventually be depleted, and even worse, the process of extracting and producing fossil fuels will produce greenhouse gases that damage the climate and particulate matter that harm human health. These particulate matter will affect global climate change, causing huge economic losses and health damage. Renewable energy is an important component of the global transition towards a low-carbon economy and mitigating climate change. The current era is of environmental awareness, and the severity and attention to climate change issues are unprecedented. The importance of renewable energy has received attention from governments and all sectors of society in various countries. In order to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, finding and utilizing sustainable alternatives to energy has become an important goal for humanity. The benefits of renewable energy include reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving air and water quality, achieving energy independence and strengthening energy security, creating employment opportunities, and economic growth. Renewable energy has enormous potential to change the energy landscape. This article elaborates on the importance of renewable energy and China's role on the global renewable energy stage. China is one of the leaders in the global use of renewable energy. This article explores the benefits that China can bring to its environment, economy, and society, as well as how developing countries and countries that are friendly and deeply cooperative with China can benefit from it. By having a correct understanding and rational use of renewable energy, we can create a cleaner and more resilient future for future generations. 1、 As a leader in the field of renewable energy, the Chinese government incorporated new energy into its sustainable development plan in the 1990s. Since the beginning of the 21st century, multiple new energy policies and industry measures have been promulgated and implemented. Currently, China has become a global leader in the field of renewable energy. In order to address environmental challenges, strengthen energy security, stimulate economic activities, create employment opportunities, and improve trade balance, China has prioritized the development of renewable energy. As a resource rich and dynamic country, China has enormous potential for renewable energy and can lead the transformation of the global energy system. In 2015, the Paris Agreement, adopted under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, mainly focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, aiming to control the increase in global average temperature from pre industrial periods to within 2 degrees Celsius and strive to limit the temperature increase to within 1.5 degrees Celsius. In order to achieve these goals, renewable energy plays a crucial role in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Ten years ago, China's installed capacity of fossil fuel power generation accounted for two-thirds of the country's total installed capacity, but now it has significantly decreased to less than half of the country's installed capacity. In November 2023, Chinese climate change envoy Xie Zhenhua and US President's climate envoy John Kerry pledged to "work hard to triple global renewable energy installations by 2030.". Energy experts believe that this is a revival of climate cooperation between the world's two largest economies, and they hope that these two senior climate negotiators will continue to engage in active exchanges to ensure a brighter future for the global response to climate change. It is worth mentioning that the Chinese government has the ability to prove with concrete reasons that China is at the forefront of addressing climate change. For example, in 2020, the Chinese government promised to achieve a total installed capacity of at least 1200 gigawatts of wind and solar power by 2030, an increase of over 200% compared to 2020; At the same time, it also promises to increase the proportion of wind and solar energy consumption in total energy consumption from the current 9.7% to 16.5%. This indicates China's recognition of the importance of getting rid of fossil fuels to curb climate change, as well as significant commitments and investments in renewable energy infrastructure. According to data from the International Renewable Energy Agency, China's total solar installed capacity in 2020 was approximately 253 gigawatts, and efforts are being made to achieve the goal of 1200 gigawatts of wind and photovoltaic power by 2030, which requires significant investment for this growth rate. In fact, as early as 2013, China's solar photovoltaic power generation exceeded that of the entire Europe, and now, the same development pace is still continuing. The International Energy Agency, in evaluating its commitment to "doubling global renewable energy by 2030," pointed out that China is the main driving force behind the 50% increase in global renewable energy installed capacity in 2023. In 2022, China's installed capacity of solar photovoltaic power generation is close to the total of other countries in the world; In 2023, China's newly added solar installed capacity doubled, and the newly added wind power installed capacity increased by 66%. How has China, which has been considered one of the world's largest greenhouse gas emitters for many years, become a renewable energy powerhouse? China has provided the answer with practical actions. At the beginning of this century, as labor costs continued to rise, reliance on coal led to an increasing greenhouse gas emissions in China and plunged it into multiple crises of air, soil, and water pollution. This has led to negative impacts on the ecological environment, economic development, people's lives, and national diplomacy (especially when facing countries more susceptible to the impact of climate change), which has made the Chinese government attach great importance to energy issues. The need to purify the domestic natural environment coincides with the global trend of emission reduction, and Chinese policymakers have been searching for new technologies and investments to make efforts to avoid global climate disasters and develop renewable technologies. In each of the following five-year plans, China has made strategic investments in various aspects of renewable technologies, such as solar and wind power generation capacity, green hydrogen, geothermal projects, and research and investment in battery storage and its supply chain. For many years, China has not only basically achieved the goal of leading the production of solar and wind energy technologies, but also has advantages in almost all aspects of the supply chain, including the mining and processing of rare earth metals and strategic minerals necessary for clean energy development. Nowadays, China has over 80% of the global solar energy manufacturing capacity. This remarkable achievement has lowered the global price of solar panels, especially providing assistance to many impoverished countries. This is an important commitment made to the world and also sends a strong political signal to renewable energy investment across China. In northern China, large-scale wind farms are already in operation; In the desert areas of western China, many large state-owned enterprises have participated in the construction of a series of clean energy bases. These bases are composed of large solar arrays and wind farms, and will be connected to the eastern Chinese market through high-speed transmission lines. Due to the strong solar radiation in the desert and the availability of a large amount of inexpensive land, these projects have great advantages. Bloomberg New Energy Finance stated in a report that China's goal is to build over 200 such bases by 2030, helping to increase its renewable energy production capacity to about 3.9 terawatts, more than three times the total in 2022. As a leader in the field of solar photovoltaic, China not only has abundant solar energy resources in the Gobi Desert and western provinces, but also has formulated sound policies and provided incentive measures, thereby achieving technological progress and economic growth. In addition, the development momentum of offshore wind energy in China is also increasing, with offshore wind power generation increasing by 34% in the first quarter of 2024; China has numerous rivers and abundant precipitation, which gives it a huge advantage in hydroelectric power generation. The world's top 12 hydropower stations, with 5 located in China; China has huge potential for biomass energy and geothermal energy. Xizang, Yunnan and other regions have high thermal gradients, and show huge untapped renewable energy potential. （2） The following are some key statistical data on China's renewable energy production capacity. 1. Photovoltaics: Nearly 90% of the global photovoltaic industry's production capacity is in China. Among the top 10 global companies in photovoltaic modules, 7 are Chinese companies. According to Rystad Energy Modeling, it is expected that China's solar photovoltaic installed capacity will increase by 165 gigawatts in 2024, 170 gigawatts in 2025, and exceed 1000 gigawatts by the end of 2026. 2. Wind energy: In the first quarter of 2024 alone, China's wind power generation reached 263.6 billion kilowatt hours. In a study published in the journal Environmental Science and Ecological Technology, a joint research group led by Lu Xi, an expert at the UNESCO Asia Pacific Energy Alliance think tank and a professor at the School of Environment at Tsinghua University, proposed evaluating the economic feasibility and market advantage of onshore wind power relative to traditional energy. This study emphasizes that wind power generation is crucial for China's carbon neutrality goal by 2060. Another research result indicates that since 2020, the technological potential of wind power generation in China has significantly increased, equivalent to approximately 7.2 times the electricity consumption. This study has significant implications for ongoing renewable energy research and climate change, emphasizing the feasibility of incorporating wind power into energy portfolios at lower costs, thereby providing new sustainable energy solutions. 3. Hydropower: China is the world's largest producer of hydropower, and the world's largest hydroelectric power plant (Three Gorges Dam) is located in Yiling District, Yichang City, Hubei Province, China. The hydropower station has 32 700000 kilowatt hydroelectric generator units and 2 50000 kilowatt hydroelectric generator units, with a total installed capacity of 22.5 million kilowatts and an average annual power generation of 88.2 billion kilowatt hours. The Three Gorges Dam of the Yangtze River was first built in 1994 and was successfully completed and accepted in 2015. This large-scale project plays a crucial role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and meeting China's growing electricity demand. 4. Renewable Energy: According to the 2023 Renewable Energy Annual Market Report released by the International Energy Agency in early 2024, China's installed renewable energy capacity growth is leading globally in 2023. It is expected that by 2028, China will account for 60% of the world's new renewable energy generation. According to data from the National Energy Administration of China, as of the end of March 2024, the installed capacity of renewable energy in China reached 1.585 billion kilowatts, accounting for approximately 52.9% of China's total installed capacity. According to a report from the International Energy Agency, the global renewable energy installed capacity in 2023 increased by 50% compared to 2022, and the growth rate of installed capacity is faster than at any time in the past 30 years. Currently, about one seventh of the world's primary energy comes from renewable energy technologies; In the coming decades, renewable energy will play a core role in the decarbonization process of energy systems. Prior to the COP28 Climate Change Conference held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, international energy
Edit：Chen Xinyan, Xiao Yun（internship） Responsible editor：Li Nian
Source：Outlook New Era
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