The Greening of China: An Opportunity to Create U.S. Jobs
The CSIS Energy and National Security Program and the Asia Society Initiative for U.S.-China Cooperation on Energy and Climate hosted Steve Papermaster, Co-Founder, and Peggy Liu, Chairperson, of the Joint U.S.-China Cooperation on Clean Energy (JUCCCE) to discuss the NGO’s initiatives to accelerate the deployment of clean energy technologies in China and promising opportunities presented by a greening China for U.S. commerce and jobs creation.
Mr. Papermaster began the session by describing JUCCCE’s unique approach to engagement with China on energy. Instead of using government-to-government relationships, which can be constrained by expectations and uncertainty stemming from changes in the political environment, JUCCCE identifies China’s major market levers (e.g. the electric power grid, urbanization, and vocational training) and key local decision makers (e.g. mayors and state-owned enterprises) and then catalyzes public-private partnerships to directly connect buyers of green energy systems with the appropriate resources. With this approach, JUCCCE seeks to immediately harness opportunities in China presented by rapid growth.
Ms. Liu then discussed several nascent opportunities for the U.S. to more effectively engage China. The first is on building a smart grid. China is expanding its electric power transmission and distribution capabilities at a rapid pace, spending $35 billion on new grid construction in 2007. Nearly $17 billion of that sum was spent internationally, indicating a huge opportunity for U.S. and other foreign commerce going forward. Additionally, there are relatively few Chinese decision makers in this arena. China’s grid is owned and operated by two companies, both of which are now considering smart grid and other new technologies for deployment. Liu asserted that once China undertakes a successful demonstration of smart grid (likely more quickly than the United States), it will be deployed nationwide, offering an expanding market and important learning ground for the U.S. private sector.
Liu identified urbanization as the second key market lever to be utilized in the greening of China. It is estimated that 50,000 new skyscrapers will be built in the next twenty years, and during that time approximately 350 million Chinese will migrate from the countryside to cities. This will make China the largest market in the world not only for building materials, but also for expertise in urban growth-related services that require skills currently in short domestic supply – for instance urban planning, or the design, construction, and operation of municipal waste and water treatment systems. On a local level, Liu said that mayors, who have control over land use, policy, financial resources, and citizens advocacy, are critical to the implementation of green technology deployment. Many are competing to build the next “eco-city,” but cannot deploy because they lack resources or an awareness of available resources – financial, vendors, skilled workers, etc. Enabling these relatively few potential buyers, said Liu, by connecting them with private resources could have a tremendous and immediate impact on the deployment of green technologies in China.
The third major area for U.S.-China cooperation, stated Liu, is vocational training for green jobs. China currently does not harbor the skilled people to install and manage clean energy systems at the scale that they could potentially be deployed. Needed personnel will include designers, electricians, roofers, contractors and workers to provide maintenance. Liu argued that there is an opportunity for the U.S. to fill an urgent void, building its own capacity to take on these jobs (in preparation for increasing needs in the U.S.) and training Chinese workers.
