The countries that dominate in the energy field usually also dominate in the economic and political fields. Next week, the Brazilian CEO of the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change will visit China, because she knows that the success of this annual climate summit depends on China, rather than any other country.

Expectations for China's leadership in the climate field are increasing, while disappointment toward the United States is growing. The United States will attend COP30 as an observer and a disruptor - under Trump's leadership, the US seems to be trying to return to the comfort zone of oil, natural gas, and coal from the 20th century.

Last year, China's greenhouse gas emissions slightly decreased. Many analysts believe that this means China's carbon emissions will peak this year or soon.

When China announces its updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement, this timing will become clearer. It is expected that China will announce the updated targets before the next month's United Nations General Assembly, which will be closely watched, because no other country has the capability to reach or break the goals of the Paris Agreement - keeping the global average temperature rise within 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, and striving to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Last year, the wind and solar power capacity being built in China was twice that of the rest of the world combined, helping China achieve its target of 120 gigawatts of installed capacity six years ahead of schedule.

China has also rapidly risen in supplying renewable energy technologies to overseas markets. Last year, the top four wind turbine manufacturers in the world were all Chinese for the first time. The production and export of photovoltaic cells and electric vehicles also occupied a large share of the global market.

Li Shuo, director of the China Climate Center at the Asia Society, said that in the field of clean energy, discussing competition is meaningless. "There is only one player. The US is not even in the race. This momentum will continue."

As the COP30 meeting in Belem, Brazil approaches, this contrast between China and the US is becoming more pronounced, and may influence the geopolitical landscape for decades to come. Chinese officials have clearly stated on the international stage that China will defend multilateral decision-making.

In previous climate conferences, senior U.S. and Chinese negotiators often held bilateral meetings to ensure that the world's two largest emitters reached consensus. This year, China held separate climate talks with the European Union and confirmed that they would work together to ensure the success of COP30, achieving "ambitious and fair" results.

The development of renewable energy is faster. The share of fossil fuels in China's power generation capacity has fallen from two-thirds 10 years ago to below half. Belinda Scheppe, a policy analyst at the Finnish Research Center for Energy and Clean Air, said that current trends indicate that China still has the potential to reduce emissions by 30% in the next decade, which will bring significant economic benefits, especially as the global energy transition continues. (Translated by Zheng Guoyi)

This article was published on the website of The Guardian on September 7, titled "There's Only One Player: Why China Is Becoming the Leader in the World's Green Energy," written by Hua Zhong.

Original text: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7548055591101530634/

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