Energy Transition in China: New Opportunities and Challenges

ERI FEB RAS	Issue's contents	RUS
	Regionalistica 2024 Volume 11 number 5 pages 41-58

Title of the article	Energy Transition in China: New Opportunities and Challenges
Pages	41-58
Author 1	Dyomina Olga Valeryevna candidate of sciences (economics), senior researcher Economic Research Institute FEB RAS 153, Tikhookeanskaya Street, Khabarovsk, Russia, 680042 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ORCID: 0000-0002-7992-5852
Author 2	Mazitova Marina Gamilovna research fellow Economic Research Institute FEB RAS 153, Tikhookeanskaya Street, Khabarovsk, Russia, 680042 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ORCID: 0000-0002-7978-7904
Abstract	The article analyzes the specifics of the energy transition in China. It envisages a reduction in the share of coal to 50% in the country’s fuel and energy balance (FEB), large-scale development of generation based on renewable energy sources (RES), an increase in the capacity of nuclear power plants (NPPs), the development of hydrogen energy, an increase in the share of electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles to transition the country to a low-carbon development trajectory. It is determined that for China, despite its commitment to the climate agenda, the requirements of energy security and economic efficiency are a priority. This determines the preservation of a high share of coal in the country’s fuel and energy balance and stimulates the development of «clean coal technologies». It is shown that despite the high share of fossil fuels, China is a leader in the development and implementation of renewable energy generation, which causes an increase in the consumption of basic metals, minerals and rare earth elements (REE) and the formation of new natural resource market niches in the country. The transformations in bilateral relations between Russia and China as countries with the largest shares in the world energy resource markets were determined. It is revealed that Russia has almost exhausted the potential for increasing the scale of supplies (except for natural gas) in the Chinese fossil fuel market. In the natural resource markets that are in demand as part of the energy transition, Russia’s competitive advantages are relative: geographic proximity and the presence of a resource base are combined with low development of deposits and poor development of transport infrastructure. The article analyzes the potential for investment and technological cooperation between the countries, formed as a result of the energy transition. It is shown that in the energy sector, China is a potential investor for Russia and, at the same time, a platform for Russian investments. The most promising area of bilateral cooperation is technology transfer: on the Chinese side – energy production based on renewable energy sources, hydrogen energy, new types of transport; on the Russian side – energy production at nuclear power plants.
Code	339.5+338.4
DOI	10.14530/reg.2024.5.41
Keywords	energy transition, energy policy, fuel and energy balance, investments, China, Russia
Download	2024-05.41.pdf
For citation	Dyomina O.V., Mazitova M.G. Energy Transition in China: New Opportunities and Challenges. Regionalistica [Regionalistics]. 2024. Vol. 11. No. 5. Pp. 41–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.14530/reg.2024.5.41 (In Russian)
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