Taxonomy of Chinas’s “Green” Economy

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the development of the energy system of modern China. The analysis of the main directions of the formation of the system of renewable energy sources in the country is carried out, the current regulatory and legal acts regulating the direction of development in the field of energy are considered. In the PRC, under the current conditions, preference is given to economic growth and ensuring energy security due to a moderate increase in generating capacity from fossil sources using modern available technologies to minimize damage from their use, while simultaneously increasing renewable energy sources (RES). One of the main reasons for increasing renewable energy in China is strategic in nature: by increasing the share of renewable sources in its energy balance for electricity consumption, China can reduce geopolitical tensions, making the country less dependent on unstable regions in terms of energy security. The energy market, dependent on fossil fuels, depends on ensuring the safety of oil and gas transportation routes, but one of the main reasons why the Chinese government is promoting renewable energy is to reduce air pollution. The NPC Environmental Protection Committee has repeatedly noted that the production and consumption of fossil fuel energy is responsible for 90% of sulfur dioxide emissions in the country and that for this reason, 7 of the 10 most polluted cities in the world are located in China. The country is working on the reconstruction and modernization of production facilities in order to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions, technologies for carbon capture, use and storage are being developed. Currently, the country is implementing a very important transition from control over the total volume of energy consumption and the energy intensity of GDP to a new “double control” — control over the total amount of carbon emissions and the intensity of emissions.