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South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- South China Morning Post
Why China is surging ahead of Trump's America in green energy race
As US-China tensions continue, one contrast stands out sharply between the big power rivals – their approach to energy and climate issues. Advertisement Even as the Trump administration cripples green energy endeavours with executive orders and the ' Big Beautiful Bill ', China is building on its title as the world's largest renewable energy investor. According to the State Grid Energy Research Institute, China is expected to bolster its national power grid by a record 500 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy capacity this year. The energy debate unfolds with the rapidly warming world needing more clean energy than ever, especially as advancing technology drives up demand. Artificial intelligence (AI) and other innovative technologies need substantial amounts of electricity to operate, as they rely heavily on data centres and powerful computing infrastructure. Countries worldwide are trying to increase energy production as they invest in new data centres that must be kept running round the clock, with the US and China leading the field. With technology rivalry a central driver of the broader US-China tensions, Beijing has forged ahead with renewable energy goals and boosted related investment in its pursuit of a global tech lead. 01:36 China's largest photothermal power facility drives development of new form of energy China's largest photothermal power facility drives development of new form of energy In contrast, the Trump administration is cancelling tax credits for what it calls 'unreliable 'green' energy sources like wind and solar' that 'compromise America's electric grid'.
The Standard
3 days ago
- The Standard
China's exports of rare earth magnets to the U.S. skyrocket in June
Samples of rare earth minerals from left, Cerium oxide, Bastnasite, Neodymium oxide and Lanthanum carbonate are on display during a tour of Molycorp's Mountain Pass Rare Earth facility in Mountain Pass, California June 29, 2015. REUTERS/David Becker/File Photo
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- South China Morning Post
Is Asia's cleaner air driving global warming?
Global warming has picked up pace since around 2010, leading to the recent string of record hot years. Why this is happening is still unclear and is among the biggest questions in climate science today. Our new study reveals that reductions in air pollution – particularly in China and East Asia – are a key reason for this faster warming. Advertisement Clean-up of sulphur emissions from global shipping has been implicated in past research. But that clean-up only began in 2020, so it is considered too weak to explain the full extent of this acceleration. Nasa researchers have suggested that changes in clouds could play a role, either through reductions in cloud cover in the tropics or over the North Pacific. One factor that has not been well quantified, however, is the effect of monumental efforts by countries in East Asia , notably China, to combat air pollution and improve public health through strict air quality policies. There has already been a 75 per cent reduction in East Asian sulphur dioxide emissions since around 2013, and that clean-up effort picked up pace just as global warming began accelerating. Our study addresses the link between East Asian air quality improvements and global temperature, building on the efforts of eight teams of climate modellers across the world. Women in traditional Chinese attire use an umbrella to shield themselves from the sun in Shanghai on July 4. Photo: Reuters We have found that polluted air may have been masking the full effects of global warming. Cleaner air could now be revealing more of the human-induced global warming from greenhouse gases.
