Clean energy could help China achieve 2035 economic goals slash emissions Study

SINGAPORE – China is on the cusp of a clean energy-led economic revolution that could not only achieve the government’s 2035 development goals, but also slash air pollution and carbon emissions in a global win for fighting climate change, researchers say.

To get there, Beijing needs to enact policies that ramp up investment in renewable energy and green technology manufacturing and innovation, as well as set ambitious emissions reduction targets for the next decade, Helsinki-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (Crea) said in a report published on June 19.

Decisions made over the coming months will be key, the authors said.

China’s clean energy industries could double in value by 2035, adding US$2.1 trillion (S$2.7 trillion) to the economy, if the country and the world’s other large markets follow emissions targets aligned with the United Nations (UN) Paris Agreement, the planet’s main climate pact.

China is already the world’s top investor in renewable energy.

Sustained green investment will make an important contribution to China’s target of becoming a “moderately prosperous” country in a decade, delivering one-fifth of the targeted gross domestic product (GDP) growth in 2035, the authors said.

Achieving a moderately prosperous economy is a key goal for Beijing, and to achieve this would mean doubling China’s GDP from 101.6 trillion yuan (S$18.2 trillion) in 2020 to more than 200 trillion yuan by 2035.

“The next decade will be critical in deciding whether China can seize the economic and strategic advantages of clean energy sectors and lead the world into a new phase of high-quality, innovation-led development,” said Ms Belinda Schaepe, China policy analyst at Crea and a co-author of the report.

The government needs to set out ambitious policy targets in China’s 15th Five-Year Plan covering 2026 to 2030, and in its climate action plan