In the past decade, driven by continuous green investment, China's technological innovation in the fields of renewable energy, electric vehicles and other fields has constantly reached new heights. Through international cooperation, China will also share its accumulated technology and experience with different countries, benefit the people in a wider region, and play an important role in global green development.

Set a global green benchmark

According to the data of the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration, since 2012, China's energy intensity has decreased by more than 26%, the proportion of coal in energy consumption has decreased by 12.5 percentage points, the installed capacity of renewable energy power generation has exceeded 1.1 billion kilowatts, and the installed capacity of hydropower, wind power and photovoltaic power generation has ranked first in the world for many years. In addition, China leads the world in the production and sales of new energy vehicles.

According to the report Tracking Clean Energy Innovation - Focusing on China released by the International Energy Agency in 2022, China has become a major participant in energy patent application activities in a very short time, and the proportion of Chinese inventors is increasing, especially in solar photovoltaic, electric vehicle technology, lighting and other fields.

Taking solar photovoltaic as an example, the data quoted in the report shows that from 2018 to 2019, the number of international patent applications for battery and solar photovoltaic submitted by Chinese inventors was about 6 times that from 2008 to 2009, and the number of international patent applications for electric vehicle technology submitted by Chinese inventors was about 8 times that from 2008 to 2009.

The report points out that China's innovation process in the field of solar PV shows that it is a process from pure technology manufacturing to innovation. China's impact on reducing the cost of solar PV and improving the performance of solar PV has changed the global thinking on energy innovation and laid a foundation for the development of battery and electric vehicle fields.

Lewis Ndishu, an analyst at the African Policy Research Institute, a think-tank in Kenya, said that China has explored a convenient, efficient and clean development path by virtue of its technological and scale advantages, played a key role in the decarbonization process of the global energy system, set a global benchmark, and provided a model for developing countries to learn from.

Green transformation of international cooperation

In terms of green development technology innovation and large-scale application, China is not limited to the domestic market. With excellent product and technical experience, Chinese enterprises have assisted in developing renewable energy, battery manufacturing and other projects in many countries around the world to benefit local people. In Garissa County, northeastern Kenya, the largest photovoltaic power station in East Africa contracted by Chinese enterprises has continued to provide clean electricity for local people since it was put into operation.

According to reports, Garissa photovoltaic power station has an annual power generation capacity of more than 76 million kilowatt hours, meeting the power demand of hundreds of thousands of people in 70000 households. The power station also brings great "green benefits" - saving more than 20000 tons of standard coal and reducing tens of thousands of tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year. Ndishu said that Garissa PV power station has greatly increased the proportion of renewable energy in the local power grid, laying the foundation for Kenya to achieve more economic power supply.

In Brazil, since 2014, BYD Brazil has established three factories in Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil and Manaus, Amazon, respectively, with businesses covering solar power generation, battery energy storage and new energy vehicles.

Sergio Aveleda, an expert of Brazil's Inspe Education Research Institute and former director of the Sao Paulo Municipal Transportation Bureau, said that BYD also creates jobs and brings relevant knowledge and technology to the local area while introducing energy-saving and emission reduction products and solutions in the Brazilian market.

China's Wuxi Pioneer Intelligent Equipment Co., Ltd. is a world leading new energy equipment manufacturer and service provider. According to Chen Chu, the general manager of the German subsidiary of Pioneer Intelligence, Pioneer Intelligence will set up a subsidiary in Germany in 2021 to bring China's battery production equipment and technology to Germany. At present, its local partners include German Volkswagen, BMW and other well-known car enterprises. In addition, Pioneer Intelligence has also reached strategic cooperation with several European battery manufacturers.

Markus Linkamp, a professor of automotive engineering at the Technical University of Munich, Germany, said that if we want to tackle climate change, we need to achieve decarburization in the field of transportation. For the automobile industry, all electric vehicles are the best choice at present. For this, "China and Germany have made a lot of investment, and the two countries are really promoting the development of relevant technologies. In my opinion, no country can deal with climate change and other issues on its own".

Open up a new chapter of green innovation

In the face of global challenges such as climate change, water, soil and air pollution, countries urgently need to achieve green development. To this end, the Chinese government has made long-term investment and substantial efforts in low-carbon transformation, climate investment and financing, technological innovation, international cooperation, etc.

China has always actively implemented practical actions to address climate change, made a solemn commitment to "strive to reach the peak of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030, and strive to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060", and announced that no new overseas coal power projects will be built. China has set up a leading group for carbon peaking and carbon neutralization, built and implemented a dual carbon "1+N" policy system, and actively promoted low-carbon development and green transformation.

Driven by policy support and technological innovation, China is expected to achieve more in the field of green development, which shows a positive side for countries exploring green transformation, especially developing countries. Avelleda said that China's efforts and pioneering spirit in green development and carbon neutrality "encourage and guide developing countries to develop their economies in a more sustainable and green way, and accelerate the pace of building a better, more sustainable and more inclusive world".Editor/Ma Xue