Posts Tagged by China
Auspicious Times for Clean Energy Opportunities in China
| January 22, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
Ken Chan, one of our associates who helps us promote clean energy businesses in China, just wrote me:
Today, January 23, is the 1st day of the Lunar Festival, meaning the Chinese new year, the year of the “Golden Dragon,” with my cell phone buzzing nonstop with messages of Greetings and Good Tidings from Beijing.
In these five days, travelers in China are returning home to celebrate with their families. This once-a-year occasion is most auspicious and important, perhaps like Thanksgiving and Christmas in the United States. Read More
China’s Energy Scene Is the Lynchpin to a Sustainable Future
| January 13, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Sustainability |
Here’s a terrific article on China’s energy scene in Powermag.com.
The staggering rate of China’s economic growth in the recent past and foreseeable future makes them extremely interesting to those of us trying to understand the main challenges to creating a sustainable world. Not only is China the largest single polluter, but it’s the leading investor in renewable energy. Two-thirds of its electricity comes from coal (most of it imported over large distances, exacerbating the problem), and this is expected to diminish to only 58% by 2020 — but its current Five-Year Plan lays out clear and aggressive commitments in several forms of renewables.
Take a COOL Guess – the Fun Quiz on Clean Energy — Today’s Topic: Inexpensive Electricity
| December 9, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Fossil Fuels |
Question: How cheaply can we generate electricity if we don’t care what we do to the planet in the process?
Answer: Can be found at here:
Relevance: A friend told me about his trip to Inner Mongolia (see photo linked below), and said he’d never been happier to get out of anywhere. He explained that because of the density of the coal-fired power plants and other industrial facilities, you couldn’t see a mile in any direction, even on the clearest day.
Incredible Renewable Energy Opportunities in China
| November 29, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
A friend from China writes:
A pleasure speaking with you on Skype. I believe that with your connections we should be able to develop cleantech companies in China and more renewable energy projects in this part of the world.
The city of Beijing government on the 15th of June 2011, during a closed meeting with Embassies, Consulates and some of the top 100 foreign companies in China announced that the City of Beijing has RMB60 billion (US$10 Billion) to support foreign cleantech companies in China, to make Beijing the first truly green city in the world. I have attached a brief article on China’s Green Technology Program.
Thank you for the book. I appreciate it very much.
My reply includes:
Thanks. I’m sorry for not having sent the book to you earlier. As we discussed, there is much for Americans to worry about re: IP protection in dealing with China. But you folks out-invested us by a factor of 24:1 last year in solar alone ($34B vs. $1.3B). So, while there is much to fear, there is much to be gained.
Bellingham, WA Not Happy Being Waystation for Coal Bound for China
| October 26, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Fossil Fuels |
Here’s an NPR spot on Bellingham, WA and their new rail terminal that will facilitate the shipment of enormous quantities of coal from Montana and Wyoming to China. Understandably, locals are not happy. Though some folks are salivating over the jobs that will be directly associated with building and operating the terminal, others fear a loss of tourism, as this historically pristine and eco-conscious spot loses its charm and becomes a temporary home to trains of coal cars, each one over a mile long, running 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Proponents assure community activists that all sorts of high technology will be deployed to minimize the coal dust that would otherwise coat the landscape and nearby Puget Sound. But most Bellinghamians aren’t thrilled to see their town become noisier, and associated with the dirtiest of all forms of energy.
It certainly does seem a shame that mankind can’t find a better way to conduct itself than mining coal out of the middle of the United States, shipping it by rail to Bellingham, and putting it on barges bound for China, where it will be burned in plants that belch forth their deadly fumes.
China, Renewables, and Energy Storage
| September 19, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Energy Storage |
Here’s an excellent article that expands on what I wrote in my report on China and renewable energy.
I agree with a great deal of this, but the figures on the amount of energy and the amount of money are off by several orders of magnitude: ”A KPMG study expects that electricity consumption in China will rise to 6,400 TWh by 2020, up from 3,600 TWh in 2010. To meet that demand, approximately $2.8 billion in additional investment will be needed, says KPMG.” $2.8 billion won’t cover the cost of the cigars for the bureaucrats overseeing this effort.
In any case, there are some excellent observations made here.
Lawyers’ Role in the Global Quest for Clean Energy
| September 5, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
I just finished up my report on China and Renewables, in which 200 survey respondents did what I thought was a masterful job in answering the question: Why Is China Investing So Heavily in Clean Energy? I’ll have the report available for download shortly – certainly within the next day or two.
But no sooner did I hit “save” for the final time and send the report off to the proofreader did I realize that there is another factor that affects the calculus that, as far as I can recall, not a single person mentioned: the Chinese culture is not dominated by lawyers. Read More
Free Report: US Companies Can Build Relationships with China
| August 10, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
Here’s another in a series of free reports, based on the results of a recent 2GreenEnergy survey of industry businesspeople. Linked here, “How US Companies Can Build Relationships with China” is now available for free download.
The sheer volume of questions I receive on China every week is ridiculous – and it seems to be growing even larger. People in cleantech view China the way the famous robber viewed banks: it’s where the money is. And, as the US continues to sit on its hands and let the rest of the world lead the way to clean energy, folks are looking to China as the real source of vision and power in this space. As an American, I’m not happy about it, but it’s true.
As you’ll notice, the report presents the level of interest that American entrepreneurs have in various activities vis-à-vis China. It’s broken down along numerous different “sub-interests: selling products and services, raising capital from Chinese public sector agencies and private investors, developing relationships with manufacturers, establishing sales channels, and protecting IP from expropriation by Chinese or other foreign companies. We also asked people about their interests in certain general areas of technology: LED lighting, water purification, renewable energy, energy efficiency, electric transportation, and sustainable architecture.
The survey also explores a number of higher level issues:
- The most exciting aspects – as well as the drawbacks — of the rapidly expanding size of the Chinese economy in renewable energy, electric transportation, and cleantech more generally
- Fears associated with dealing with the Chinese, and the changes respondents would like to see regarding the way the Chinese operate with respect to the rest of the world
If you download the report, you’ll learn:
- The level of awareness and excitement concerning business potential that China represents generally
- What exactly is fueling this enthusiasm
- Where respondents see the greatest areas of concern and fear
- How respondents perceive the challenges associated with poor product quality; issues with communication and cross-cultural understanding, and customs that make conflict resolution quite difficult and intellectual property hard to protect
- Response to moral issues: sustainability and human rights
These are all monstrously tough issues. I’m reminded of the cartoon in which a scientist is presenting two equations, between which he’s written: “Miracle occurs here.” Apparently, that’s what we need.
Again, here’s the report: “How US Companies Can Build Relationships with China”
China’s Commitment to Green Tech: Six Out of Seven Ain’t Bad
| July 7, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
Every day we read about the global dominance that China is achieving in cleantech, and wish the US could get on the stick as well. Here’s a link to a wonderful presentation by HSBC that explicates China’s commitment to green technologies nicely.
China’s 12th Five Year Plan includes seven Strategic Emerging Industries (SEI), six of which are related to clean energy and sustainability. While we in the US are arguing about trivia and eviscerating our environmental regulations, the Chinese will be investing as much as $1.5 trillion between now and 2020 in: Read More
Vaclav Smil Discusses Our Civilization’s Sustainability
| May 11, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Sustainability |
Most of my business focus is on renewable energy — an arena that, if successful, could conceivably create a world in which it matters very little how much energy we consume – or even waste. Some people say that that once all our energy comes from totally clean sources, we can use as much as we want of it with complete impunity. But I’m constantly reminded that this is a horribly shortsighted view.
In this fantastic interview, distinguished author and professor Vaclav Smil discusses the growth in our population and the effects that this will most probably have on the sustainability of our civilization. In short, he feels that he can make no real projections, because so much depends on the rapidly changing lifestyles of the large populations in China and India. In particular, he asks: Will they evolve to be like Americans and Canadians – or more like the Japanese? We Westerners waste about twice as much material and energy as the Japanese, and eat more than five times as much meat.
Great talk; I hope you’ll check it out.
