Experts say green transition boosting energy ties and affordable power

Further efforts are expected to strengthen global energy cooperation and accelerate the clean and secure transformation of the energy industry while ensuring affordable electricity for both residential and industrial consumers, experts and executives said on Tuesday.

The remarks were made at the ongoing 14th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos Forum, in Tianjin.

Xin Baoan, chairman of State Grid Corp of China, said the State-owned power supplier will take a series of measures to enhance cooperation among energy facilities globally, strengthen links with power grids in neighboring countries, deepen policy coordination, promote the internationalization of energy production, consumption and trade, and actively participate in the formulation of international standards.

Xin said such efforts will be made to bolster international collaboration in green energy development, offering regional solutions that will contribute to the global pursuit of carbon neutrality.

"While promoting green energy transition, more efforts should be made to ensure secure and affordable electricity for both household and industrial users. At present, China's power price remains at a relatively low level compared to the global average," he said.

China's major power grid constructor and operator has stepped up efforts to promote green energy transition in recent years. It has an action plan to achieve its decarbonization goals and accelerate the construction of a new type of power system in China. It has also increased its investments in relevant scientific and technological projects.

State Grid also strengthened construction of grids, which greatly improved their capacity and ensured stable operations after connecting with a large amount of new energies. It has so far built 33 ultra-high-voltage transmission and transformation projects and the world's largest new energy cloud platform, which connects over 4.4 million new energy stations.

Such efforts are in line with the National Energy Administration's call in April to deepen global communication, make full use of cooperation opportunities brought by platforms such as the League of Arab States and the African Union, contribute to the low-carbon transition of global energy industry, and support stable and secure energy supply with an emphasis on raising efficiency and making energy more accessible.

China is now the world's largest market for clean energy and the biggest new energy equipment manufacturer, according to the NEA. The country contributed over 70 percent of the global photovoltaic capacity and 60 percent of the wind power capacity as of May, effectively driving down the cost of renewable energy worldwide and accelerating the green transformation of the global energy industry.

By May, China had green energy cooperation projects with over 100 countries and regions, established government-to-government energy cooperation mechanisms with over 90 countries, regions and international organizations, and expanded energy cooperation networks involving participants of the Belt and Road Initiative.

"China's future is looking extremely positive from an economic perspective, and it's vital that China deepen collaboration with European countries and regions to battle climate crisis, promote decarbonization and facilitate transition to renewable energy. These are challenges that need global solutions in which China could be at the forefront," said Simon O'Connell, CEO of the Netherlands Development Organization, an organization that aims to promote sustainable development, at the Summer Davos Forum.

Liu Yang, expert partner at the global consultancy Bain &Co, said at the forum that more efforts are expected to guide companies from various sectors to voluntarily participate in the carbon markets, which is important to achieve global decarbonization goals.

"It is clear that voluntary carbon market investment is required to scale up climate action globally, and it plays an important role in establishing a global price on carbon for business. While it is more than two decades old globally, the market is still in its early stages with high degrees of controversy and therefore uncertainty for corporate entrants," Liu said.