Energy & transport international relations

The EU-China Energy Conference gathers together high-level European and Chinese representatives from industry and the administration every two years, alternating between China and Brussels. The most recent, the 6^th EU-China Energy Conference, was held on 20 and 21 February 2006 in Shanghai, and opened by Commissioner Piebalgs and Chinese Vice Minister of MOST, Mr Ma Songde. The five main themes of the day and a half Conference were:

a) Reinforcing the security of energy supply;

b) Promoting renewable energy;

c) Increasing energy efficiency;

d) Strengthening nuclear safety and security;

e) Interactions between energy policy and research and environmental policies (notably through the Energy and Environment Programme (EEP).

Recent initiatives

At the EU-China Energy Working Group meeting in March 2005, two new initiatives were agreed:

a) Action Plan on Clean Coal

The main objective of the EU-China Action Plan on Clean Coal is to provide a sound set of information to decision-makers at political/ministerial/corporate level how to develop policies and to implement Clean Coal technologies in China that are available or that are currently being developed in Europe.

Clean coal technologies are those technologies which reduce carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions from coal combustion. In the short term, the priority is to facilitate and encourage the development and deployment of higher efficiency electricity generating technologies producing more electricity from each tonne of coal. Over the longer term, the priority is to successfully develop an economic “near-zero emissions” coal fired plant that captures the CO₂ and can store it (sequestration) and/or use it commercially. Commercial applications for captured CO₂ could include enhanced gas and oil recovery.

This is an important future area of co-operation with China and an MoU on this issue was signed in February 2006.

B) Action Plan on Industrial Co-operation Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energies

The main objectives of the action plan are to establish closer contacts and to support the efforts in China to promote industrial co-operation in order to increase the use of energy efficiency and the use of renewable energies in China.

C) Strategic Dialogue on Energy and Transport

A Memorandum of Understanding establishing an “EU-China Dialogue on Energy and Transport Strategies” between DG TREN and the NDRC was signed on the occasion of the EU-China Summit on 5^th September 2005 in Beijing. The first meetings took place in Brussels on 21^st March 2006, with the energy discussions focussing on:

Energy policies,
Energy efficiency, energy savings and the environmental impact of energy,
Technology co-operation and renewables.

D) Joint Declaration on Climate Change between China and the EU

This declaration was issued on the occasion of the last EU-China Summit in Beijing on 5^th September 2005. Recognising the increasing importance of China not just economically but also its impact on the world energy markets and on climate change, this declaration has been designed to develop a partnership to address climate change issues through the promotion and development of more environmentally friendly energy technologies and sources. Technical co-operation has been foreseen in the following areas:

Energy efficiency, energy conservation, and new and renewable energy;
Clean coal;
Methane recovery and use;
Carbon capture and storage;
Hydrogen and fuel cells;
Power generation and transmission

In addition, the declaration also sets a co-operation goal by 2020 of developing and demonstrating in China and the EU advanced, near-zero emissions coal technology through carbon capture and storage.

Further to this, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on “Co-operation on Near-Zero Emissions Power Generation Technology through Carbon Capture and Storage” was signed by Commissioner Piebalgs and MOST Deputy Minister Ma Songde in Shanghai on 20^th February 2006 (Press release). This MoU covers a first phase of co-operation for exploring the feasibility of, and options for, near-zero emissions coal technology in China through carbon dioxide capture and storage, and the planning for further phases (ie: defining and designing a demonstration plant, and the construction and operation of a demonstration plant) should be foreseen in the future.