New partnership for global transformation of energy systems

ABU DHABI: On the margins of the 3rd IRENA Assembly in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) Federal Environment minister, Peter Altmaier and deputy chair of China's National Energy Administration (NEA) Liu Qi signed a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding pledging future co-operation on the expansion of renewable energies between the Federal Environment Ministry and the NEA.

With this agreement both countries are to work together on energy policy, the issue of system integration, environmental impacts and model projects such as China's "new energy cities" to overcome structural bottlenecks in the expansion of renewable energies in China.

Currently, circa 80 percent of China's power supply comes from coal-fired power stations. In 2010 during international climate negotiations China officially set itself the goal of reducing its reliance on fossil fuels by aiming to cover 15 percent of its primary energy consumption with renewable energy by 2020.

Following this, in 2012 China decided to increase its capacity for solar energy supply from 7 gigawatts to 21 gigawatts by 2015 and 50 gigawatts by 2020.  In addition to this grid-connected wind energy capacity will be increased from 100 gigawatts by 2015 and 200 gigawatts by 2020. Ambitious expansion targets in relation to solar thermal power and electricity generation from biomass have also been set in place.