On July 16, 2021, the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) of China issued the “Green Development Guidelines for Foreign Investment and Cooperation” (hereinafter referred to as the 2021 Green Guidelines see link to full document at end of this article).  The Guidelines focus on both investment and trade. With… Continue reading

KINSHASA, July 18 (Xinhua) — In Kolwezi, in southern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), beyond counting are drilling rigs and dump trucks coming back and forth on mine after mine. But on the outskirt of this world-class mining hub, one particular mine stands out from the others, with greenery sprawling its mining dumps where… Continue reading

Emerging economies are increasingly investing in clean power grids over polluting power plants but many are still reluctant to quit coal. Vietnam is experiencing a solar energy boom Researchers say the amount of electricity generated from burning fossil fuels has likely peaked worldwide as emerging markets invest in clean and cheap renewables over coal, oil… Continue reading

On April 1, 2021, the Cuban News Agency (ACN) reported that the use of renewable energy sources in Cuba during 2020 reached and installed power potential of 297,4 Megawatts, which is expected to increase in tune with a national energy strategy aimed at diversifying energy sources. Cuba began investing in renewable energy in 2014 and… Continue reading

Forest clearance in Southeast Asia is accelerating, leading to unprecedented increases in carbon emissions, according to new research. A joint China-UK research team led by the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) in Shenzhen, China, with collaboration from the researchers from The University of Hong Kong, Leeds University UK, Mae Jo University, Thailand and… Continue reading

Total carbon emissions, per capita amounts, main drivers, and outlook. Carbon dioxide emissions are the primary driver of climate change, but they’re not the only one.1 Other greenhouse gases include methane, water vapor, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases (that includes hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, sulfur hexafluoride, and nitrogen trifluoride).2 While it’s difficult to quantify all greenhouse gas emissions,… Continue reading

US trade war and illegal sanctions risk shortages in world’s top silicon-producing region. TOKYO — on 4 July 2021, the Nikkei Asia news outlet reported that US sanctions against the Chinese solar manufacturing industry “are now casting a shadow over the solar industry” and “one of the world’s biggest sources of silicon.” The article reported that… Continue reading

US trade war and illegal sanctions risk shortages in world’s top silicon-producing region. TOKYO — on 4 July 2021, the Nikkei Asia news outlet reported that US sanctions against the Chinese solar manufacturing industry “are now casting a shadow over the solar industry” and “one of the world’s biggest sources of silicon.” The article reported that… Continue reading

Vietnam has been a Southeast Asia solar success story. It went from having barely any generation in 2018 to a quarter of its total installed capacity being solar – a 100-fold increase in two years. This rapid growth is mainly down to the Vietnamese government’s feed-in tariff which provides a guaranteed above-market price for renewable energy producers; other incentives signed… Continue reading

No so long ago the Western news media was full of stories of how China was “ramping up coal power” and claims that this was a threat to achieving the Paris Climate Agreement targets. The story was run by the Financial Times and the UK Government controlled BBC, among others. Of course, the media versions… Continue reading

Central Asia’s largest wind power project with a generating capacity of 100 MW was connected to the grid on 20 June 2021. The power project, with a total of 40 wind turbines, near the city of Zhanatas, Kazakhstan was built by a Chinese firm and is jointly owned by local company Visor Kazakhstan and China Power… Continue reading

CGTN reported on 29 June 2021 that China will launch a voluntary fishing moratorium on the high seas from July this year to preserve squid resources in open waters, according to China’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs which regulates fishing. From July 1 to September 30, the fishing ban will be observed in part… Continue reading

(Note article first published 2 May 2021 in China Environment News) In February 2021, China’s embassy in Bangladesh sent a letter to the local Ministry of Finance stating that “the Chinese side shall no longer consider projects with high pollution and high energy consumption, such as coal mining [and] coal-fired power stations”. Why did China… Continue reading

Environmental concerns The Sengwa coal fired power station project in Zimbabwe was being developed by RioEnergy, a unit of RioZim. Last year the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) was reported to have signed a formal notice of interest in funding the plant, to be constructed by China Gezhouba Group, while associated transmission lines… Continue reading

Islamabad : Pakistan and China are going to turn China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) into a model for ecological civilisation aiming at restoration of the natural environment in the region. According to the details, a joint committee has been formed to work towards ecological civilisation that also comprises Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate… Continue reading

CLIMATE CHANGE MYTHS ABOUT CHINA DEBUNKED The following article, from the German news service Deutsche Welle, (DW) reiterates what China Environment News has been writing about since we started 18 months ago. It’s very encouraging to see the one of the largest and most influential broadcasters in Europe take such an unbiased and objective view… Continue reading

Is Bitcoin an example of the worst excesses of rampant neo-liberalism? Patrick Li’s Bitcoin mine used to be filled with the persistent hum of rows and rows of computers, all busy around the clock solving the complicated mathematical puzzles needed to keep the world’s most popular cryptocurrency operational. Li, 39, had set up shop in… Continue reading

Volvo is 100% owned by Geely Automobiles in China. The founder of Geely personally owns 10% of the common shares of Daimler Benz AG in Germany. Geely is the largest privately-owned automotive manufacturer in China today. Three of Geely’s people sit in the Daimler Benz AG Board of Directors. It is understood that there is… Continue reading

An analysis of Chinese-backed coal power from 2014-2020 One constantly sees claims in the Western media that China is massively expanding coal fired power plants around the world. The facts, as always, are not quite what the handful of Western regimes claim. On 16 June 2021, the Green BRI Center released a study of overseas… Continue reading

Central Asia’s largest wind power project is an example of international co-financing implemented by a Chinese construction company. Does this example provide lessons to support the green energy transition of emerging economies by mobilizing international finance? Fossil fuel production constitutes 17 percent of oil and gas rich Central Asian Kazakhstan’s GDP. Despite this Kazakhstan announced the country… Continue reading

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, June 7, 2021 – The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), and the National Energy Administration of the People’s Republic of China (NEA) have today agreed to work to strengthen cooperation as the world’s largest renewable energy market builds momentum towards the achievement of its carbon neutrality goals. China has pledged to peak its… Continue reading

Russia has been slow to move on climate action – but that is about to change, with the government set to deliver a host of measures on climate change action, with a detailed plan to be published by October 2021. After seven years of sanctions and accusations of malign activities by all sides, political relations… Continue reading

The 2021 Dasgupta Report provides a much-needed roadmap to correct flawed economic tools by valuing Nature as an asset. A test of whether markets will follow this roadmap involves quickly expanding voluntary carbon sequestration markets. Editor’s Note: Fundamentally, the Dasgupta Review develops the economics of biodiversity on the understanding that we, and our economies, are… Continue reading