Greening China’s overseas energy projects

(China Dialogue, 18 Nov 2020) New database from Boston University’s Global Policy Center shows the biggest share of Chinese global power investment going into coal but renewables projects on the rise.

China’s announcement that it would aim for carbon neutrality by 2060 made a splash at the UN General Assembly in September, with Japan and South Korea making similar commitments in the weeks that followed. But questions remain about what this domestic policy shift will mean for China’s overseas power investments.

A new database we have compiled at Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center highlights how many of these investments are in fossil fuel-based power plants, and China’s plans to build more.

Collecting data on power plants outside China that have received financing from Chinese policy banks or foreign direct investment from Chinese companies, we counted 777 power plants in 83 different countries. This total includes plants that are operational, under construction and in planning, and together represents 186.5 gigawatts (GW) of generation capacity.

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China Dialogue, 18 Nov 2020: Greening China’s overseas energy projects