Reflections on the legacy of Jiang Zemin, China’s president from 1993 to 2003, who passed away on Wednesday, emphasized how he presided over a decade of explosive economic growth. Fewer have pointed out that he was also a key architect of China’s current relationship with Africa.
After the Mao era, emblematized by Chinese involvement in African anti-colonial struggles, the relationship went dormant as China focused on building economic ties ...
Category: Energy
How Host Country Policies are Driving Chinese Finance for Renewables
By Rishikesh Ram Bhandary The Egyptian government, host of the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), has dubbed this meeting the “implementation COP.” For many developing countries, international finance is a key enabler that allows ...
The China-Shaped Hole in Natural Gas Financing
The role of natural gas in African green transitions has become a flashpoint as Europe tries to maximize its own access to African natural gas while also discouraging African countries from factoring it into their own development plans. New research from Boston University’s Global ...
The Wider Implications of Europe’s Quest for African Natural Gas”?
It’s becoming increasingly clear to me that one of the most important tools for making it through these times is a capacity for grim amusement. Without it, one would simply be crushed by something like the recent UN ...
China’s No New Coal Power Overseas Pledge, One Year On
By Han Chen and Wei Shen On 21 September 2021, China’s president, Xi Jinping, told the UN General Assembly via video link that China would increase support for green and low-carbon energy in developing countries, and not build any new coal-fired ...
Where Does China Source Its Natural Gas
China is the world's fastest-growing market for natural gas and imported more last year than any other country -- accounting for 60% of global demand. The bulk of China's imports in 2021 came from Australia (40%), with Malaysia, Qatar and the ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Jiang Zemin Created the Africa-China Relationship As We Know It Today
Shining a Light on China’s Support for Power Plants in Belt and Road Initiative Countries in Africa and Asia
By Oyintarelado (Tarela) Moses In September 2021, Chinese leader Xi Jinping announced that China would not build new coal plants overseas. At the same time, many countries in Africa and Asia continue to seek finance for electricity-generating infrastructure to meet ...
3 Ways to Mobilize China’s BRI for Energy Transitions
By Rebecca Ray A global consensus is forming: countries around the world must embark on energy transitions to mitigate climate change and protect the health of their own citizens. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) could play a key facilitating role, ...
China and the Prospect of Early Retirement of Coal Plants in the Global South
By Alex Clark, Christoph Nedopil and Cecilia Springer Formerly the world’s largest public financier of coal, China has committed not to build new coal plants overseas. China has financed between 41 GW and 52 GW of currently operating ...
Why China Building a Small Power Plant in a Small Congolese Town is Such a Big Deal
A consortium of Chinese entrepreneurs based in Angola recently signed an agreement to build an electric power generation facility in the small Congolese city of Kenge, 269 kilometers west of the capital Kinshasa, according to Radio Okapi. Not ...
Lights On: Prospects for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa Amid Pandemic and Debt Distress
By Cecilia Springer and Magalie Masamba A November 2020 report found the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region could achieve full energy access and 53% renewable energy (RE) installed capacity by 2040 with an investment of nearly $53 billion.