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AsiaElec COMMENTARY AsiaElec

China’s welcome

net zero surprise

China’s net zero ambitions are a welcome surprise for the global energy
transition, but more details are needed, writes Richard Lockhart

CHINA CHINA’S aims of being carbon neutral by 2060, Change (IPCC) has said that countries need to
and for CO2 emissions to peak by 2030 at the halve their emissions of CO2 by 2030 if the world
WHAT: latest. is to have even a 50% chance of limiting the tem-
China aims to be carbon This would have a major impact on global perature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius by reaching
neutral by 2060 efforts to combat climate change in the long net zero by 2050. China is setting a target of just
term, and for the international community’s 2060 for net zero emissions.
WHY: chances of achieving the Paris Agreement 2030
Beijing said the target targets. Political move
was part of global post- The decision this week, made by Chinese China is the world’s largest emitter and pro-
COVID-10 recovery plans President Xi Jinping and reported by official ducer of coal, but it is also the biggest and fastest
media, is a major improvement of Beijing’s pre- installer of renewables capacity, and the world’s
WHAT NEXT: vious ambitions of peak emissions around 2030. largest producer of solar panels. Therefore Bei-
China must cut coal This 2030 target had represented a 10-15% jing’s policy will have a major impact on global
consumption and drive rise in emissions compared to 2015 levels. emissions in the coming decades.
investment in renewables At present, China emits 28% of the world’s As well as purely environmental aims, Bei-
carbon dioxide, according to data from the jing’s move gives it a major geopolitical boost
Union of Concerned Scientists. compared to the US, which has so far failed to
CO2 monthly emissions rose by 4-5% year on issue similar targets.
year in May to 920mn tonnes of CO2, of which “Yesterday’s announcement was framed as
636mn tonnes was from the coal-fired generat- a direct response to the coronavirus pandemic
ing sector. and the more recalcitrant position of the Trump
Emissions bounced back from their tempo- Administration towards the 2016 Paris Agree-
rary 25% lockdown dip in February and March, ment,” said Wood Mackenzie research director
analysis of official Chinese data by the think- Alex Whitworth
tank Carbon Brief showed. China is also in need of major improvements
to its image in the West after its handling of the
New target Hong Kong protests in recent months.
Xi was speaking via video link to the UN General President Xi’s announcement comes after
Assembly, and stressed that one of the lessons months of political engagement by the Euro-
from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic pean Union. European Commission President
is that humanity must pursue the green devel- Ursula von der Leyen urged Xi earlier in Sep-
opment path and a green lifestyle, official news tember to take zero emissions targets seriously.
website CGTN reported. “I welcome China’s ambition to curb emis-
China has not added much detail to its tar- sions and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
gets, and has not issued any interim targets or It’s an important step in our global fight against
individual timetables for different sectors of the climate change under the Paris Agreement. We
economy. will work with China on this goal. But a lot of
Meanwhile, the Chinese foreign ministry work remains to be done,” said von der Leyen.
said: “China is willing to contribute more and we
are now considering and studying a mid-century The future
long-term vision for climate change, including Looking ahead, China will add details to these
such issues as the peaking of carbon dioxide goals by formalising them in a new Nationally
emissions and carbon neutrality.” Determined Contribution (NDC), which it will
This long-term goal for 2060 is entirely new, submit to the IPCC. Many countries, and the
and adds China to the list of counties featur- EU, are due to set new and improved goals in
ing the UK, the EU, France, New Zealand and this document.
Sweden that have made the carbon neutral This will give the world much more infor-
commitment. mation about how China intends to meet its
However, the International Panel on Climate goals. The global community and the IPCC will

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