(Yicai Global) June 16 -- China accounted for the lion’s share of the world’s deployment and investment in green energies last year and as such plays a significant role in the global renewables landscape. It can help in sharing technology, financing emerging firms and building factories, particularly in developing countries, the executive director of a think tank told Yicai Global recently.

China made up 44 percent of the globe’s renewable energy deployment and 55 percent of its investment in renewables in 2022, followed by Europe and the US, said Rana Adib, executive director of REN21, a non-governmental organization that focusses on renewable energy policy.

China’s stable political and economic environment and its long-term policy support provide investment security, and these are key factors in attracting investment in renewable energy, Adib said. Chinese companies are also building factories in other countries, particularly in Africa.

The transition to renewable power is happening, but more attention needs to be placed on green heating and fuel to achieve a full energy transition, Adib said, citing the Renewables in Energy Supply section of the Renewables 2023 Global Status Report.

Renewables accounted for 30 percent of power generation in 2022, a record high, Adib said. But in fuel and heating, they only made up 3.6 percent and 9.2 percent of their respective sectors. This is due to a lack of attention by all energy carriers, a failure to diversify renewable energy tech beyond wind and solar power, deficiencies in policies, bottlenecks in grid connections, unequal investment levels and continued large investments in fossil fuels.

More emphasis on heating and fuel policies is needed to replicate the success story of renewable power, Adib said. Countries need to build infrastructure, not just generation capacity. Neglecting infrastructure is like making cars but not building roads. Just as we built roads knowing that they would be used by cars, the same approach should apply to renewables, he added.

Extracts from Yicai Global’s interview with Adib are given below:

Yicai Global: What role does China play in global renewable energy deployment?

Rana Adib: China has a role in technology transfers to developing countries and in providing finance to emerging firms because this is clearly one of the biggest challenges when we look at regional spreads of investment in green energy.

China accounted for 55 percent of the world’s investment in renewables in 2022, followed by Europe with 11 percent and the US with 10 percent. Africa and the Middle East together only had 1.6 percent. And Africa and Southeast Asia are regions which clearly face energy issues. China also has a role to play in building up manufacturing capacities in other countries, sharing technology and training the workforce.

YG: China is attracting a large amount of investment in renewable energy. What are the reasons behind this?

RA: I think investments come when the environment is stable, which means political and economic stability. When we look at renewables, they need long-term policies that really give investment security. In particular, when we look at sectors like solar and wind, they have been offered very good investment conditions.

Renewables in China are built up for both the national and global markets. China is one of the key exporters of solar technology, and I think what we also see is a strong alliance building up in the region as well as collaboration with African countries to develop manufacturing capabilities outside China.

YG: Do you think adopting renewables will help China achieve its goals of reaching carbon peaking by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060?

RA: Fossil fuels are responsible for 75 percent of the world’s greenhouse gases and given that a large part of energy in China is still supplied by fossil fuels, it's really important. Moving to an efficient and renewables-based energy supply is the key solution.

The Chinese government has strongly linked green energy development with its decarbonization strategy. The positive side of this is that 85 percent of newly installed capacity for energy production is based on renewable sources because it is the least expensive option. This creates a complimentary relationship between economic decisions and decarbonization strategies. However, more attention also needs to be paid to renewable heating and fuel.

YG: What can other countries learn from China for their transition to renewables?

RA: What other countries can learn from China is how to take a comprehensive strategic approach on policy and regulated frameworks, how to build up the industrial sector, generation capacities and grid infrastructure, and also how to develop the electrification of the transportation and heating sectors.

Editor: Kim Taylor