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sfce 11/20
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China Moving Forward on National Climate Actions
Nov 20, 2015 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Michael Standaert
China hopes for a “vigorous and ambitious, legally binding agreement” at United Nations climate talks to begin in Paris on Nov. 30, said the country's chief climate change negotiator. -
China leading in clean energy investment: EF CEO
Nov 20, 2015 | China Daily
China is already the global leader in clean energy investment, said Eric Heitz, CEO of the Energy Foundation (EF), Thursday in Beijing. -
GD Solar in China to shut down 640 MW of module, cell capacity
Nov 19, 2015 | SeeNews
By Tsvetomira Tsanova
Chinese firm GD Solar Co Ltd will shut down 400 MW of solar module production capacity, 180 MW of production lines for crystalline silicon cells, and 60 MW of thin-film solar cells production capacity. -
CGN considers solar power foray in France
Nov 20, 2015 | China Daily
By Tuo Yannan
China General Nuclear Power Group, the country's biggest nuclear power reactor operator, has outlined its plans to become the largest solar energy distributor in France. -
Australia Boosts Solar Financing To Scalable Levels
Nov 20, 2015 | CleanTechnica
By Glenn Meyers
As reported by the Clean Energy Finance Commission (CEFC) in Australia, its recently launched solar financing program has attracted a substantial amount of interest – enough to boost the country’s large-scale PV capacity 10-fold. -
389 MW of solar comes online in Honduras in 2015 to date
Nov 19, 2015 | PV - Magazine
By Blanca Diaz
This rapid pace makes Honduras the largest solar market in Latin America in 2015. Plants commissioned since the first of the year include one larger than 100 MW and another 61 MW. -
Obama, Trudeau United on Clean Energy, Climate
Nov 20, 2015 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Toluse Olorunnipa, Josh Wingrove and Angela Greiling Keane
In their first formal meeting, U.S. President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to disagree over Islamic State air strikes while presenting a united front to boost clean-energy production after the rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline.
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China Moving Forward on National Climate Actions
Nov 20, 2015 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Michael Standaert
China hopes for a “vigorous and ambitious, legally binding agreement” at United Nations climate talks to begin in Paris on Nov. 30, said the country's chief climate change negotiator.
Joint declarations made by the U.S. and China—the world's two leading carbon emitters—during the past year have helped to create a “foothold” for finding solutions to climate issues, China's special climate change negotiator, Xie Zhenhua, said at a Nov. 19 press conference in Beijing (219 DEN A-8, 11/13/14).
Additional statements and commitments from other countries also have laid the groundwork for a breakthrough in negotiations at the Nov. 30–Dec. 11 Paris summit, he said.
“We hope these commitments and requirements will be implemented as they are the basis for building mutual trust politically,” Xie said.
Xie did caution that “major differences still remain” on some issues involving payment from industrialized countries to help the developing world.
China's Goals
China provided its pledge to the United Nations in June. Its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDCs) says China aims to peak its carbon dioxide emissions at or before 2030, reduce carbon intensity per unit of gross domestic product by 60 percent to 65 percent compared to 2005 levels by 2030, increase the amount of nonfossil fuels in its energy mix to 20 percent by 2030, and expand forest coverage to 4.5 billion cubic meters (126 DEN A-3, 7/1/15).
Targets laid out in the coming 13th Five-Year Plan (2016–2020) such as the launch of a pilot national carbon trading system in 2017, concentrating on energy efficiency—particularly in buildings and transport—and further increasing use of renewable energy would help it meet those goals, Xie said.
He acknowledged that there have been problems with the seven pilot carbon trading platforms launched so far—particularly determining quota allocations and verifying transactions related to emissions amount—and that data accuracy and transparency will be needed to create a functioning carbon market, but the pilots were designed to work through these problems.
The government is working on legislation for establishing the legal basis for carbon emissions trading nationwide and a start date for the national pilot is still expected some time in 2017, Xie said.
Annual Report
China also released its annual climate change report, which outlined areas the country is focusing on for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, including closing down some coal mines and outdated coal-fired power facilities; reducing overcapacity in heavy industry; and encouraging renewable energy, new energy vehicles and environmental service industry development.
Key urban areas such as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei province region, as well as Shandong, Guangdong, Jiangxi provinces and Chongqing municipality are pledging large cuts in coal consumption through 2017 as part of the country's air pollution action plans, which also will reduce carbon emissions in those areas, according to the report.
In addition to the five provinces and eight cities that have proposed to reach carbon emissions peaks between 2017 and 2020, including major cities such as Beijing, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou, another 29 cities and provinces will be expected to propose carbon peak years and total emissions targets in the near future, the report indicated.
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China leading in clean energy investment: EF CEO
Nov 20, 2015 | China Daily
China is already the global leader in clean energy investment, said Eric Heitz, CEOof the Energy Foundation (EF), Thursday in Beijing.
Clean wind power, solar energy, electric vehicles, LED lighting that uses less power but givesvery good lighting, more efficient appliances like refrigerators or washing machines, and moreefficient industrial equipment are the areas where China is a global leader, said Heitz.
"Many people, including the Chinese people, don't know that China has become a globalleader," Heitz said. "And with new commitments, China will accelerate its leadership evenfurther."
In November 2014, China and the United States announced a climate change agreement, inwhich China pledged that by no later than 2030 its carbon emissions would peak and non-fossil fuels would account for 20 percent of the country's energy mix.
In September this year, during his state visit to the United States, President Xi Jinping and hisUS counterpart Barack Obama made another joint declaration on climate change.
"This is unusual,showing the two countries have much common ground on the issue," saidEF's senior vice president Lin Jiang.
"The (upcoming) COP21 is a big deal for China and for the planet. But no matter whathappens in Paris, it will still be true that China has stepped up as global leader on globalwarming, " Heitz says.
A US non-profit organization, EF works to assist China in transitioning towards clean energyby offering international best practices.
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GD Solar in China to shut down 640 MW of module, cell capacity
Nov 19, 2015 | SeeNews
By Tsvetomira Tsanova
Chinese firm GD Solar Co Ltd will shut down 400 MW of solar module production capacity, 180 MW of production lines for crystalline silicon cells, and 60 MW of thin-film solar cells production capacity.
The decision was announced by the company’s parent Guodian Technology & Environment Group Corp Ltd (HKG:1296) on Thursday. It has been taken based on the current financial and market conditions for GD Solar and considering the overall development strategy of Guodian Technology.
The solar energy unit will continue its research and development work related to high efficiency cells and gallium arsenide cells. The parent will seek investments in and cooperation associated with this business of GD Solar, it noted.
The move to close the photovoltaics (PV) production capacity will result in a significant impairment because of which Guodian Technology expects to report significantly lower profit for 2015. It did not mention exact figures.
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CGN considers solar power foray in France
Nov 20, 2015 | China Daily
By Tuo Yannan
China General Nuclear Power Group, the country's biggest nuclear power reactor operator,has outlined its plans to become the largest solar energy distributor in France.
CGN will enter the French solar power sector through its subsidiary CGN Europe Energy, andjoin hands with French solar energy company Inovia Concept Development to builddistributed solar energy generators across France in the next few years.
The French side will be in charge of construction and maintenance of the solar powerfacilities, according to ICD Chief Executive Johnny Schlomacher. According to him, theChinese company bagged the project despite competition from a Germany company.
"The cooperation has a significant meaning to Chinese enterprises and is also a milestone forthe China-France renewable energy partnership," said Lu Wei, general manager of CGNEE.
"It will enable us to build power stations which will have installed capacity of 500 megawatts ofsolar energy in the next few years and add as many as 3,000 direct and indirect jobs inFrance," he said.
Lu explained that in the last 30 years, his company has established strong ties with Frenchcompanies for energy cooperation, especially nuclear power plants.
"Our new goal is to make CGN a world-class energy group by developing both renewableenergy and nuclear power, and proactively participate in international competition," said Lu.
CGN is the pioneer and a good example of China's State-owned companies competing in theFrench market, Lu said. It has already cooperated with French companies to develop the thirdparty market, such as in Africa.
This is not the first clean energy project that CGN is participating in Europe.
In 2014, its French unit signed a deal for an 80 percent stake in three wind farms in EasternEngland owned by French electric utility company Electricite de France SA, which willgenerate 72 mW of power.
Earlier this year, in February, the company won the bid for the Fujin Onshore Wind PowerProject in France and completed an equity transfer deal with Eolfi, a new-energy companyfrom France.
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Australia Boosts Solar Financing To Scalable Levels
Nov 20, 2015 | CleanTechnica
By Glenn Meyers
As reported by the Clean Energy Finance Commission (CEFC)in Australia, its recently launched solar financing program has attracted a substantial amount of interest – enough to boost the country’s large-scale PV capacity 10-fold.
According to pv-tech, the program has received over 40 expressions of interest for loans under an AU$250 million (US$177.5 million) lending facility it launched earlier this year.Funding program has attracted 2GW of large-scale PV proposals
“We have received very strong interest from project developers clearly looking to further develop Australia’s large-scale solar capacity,” CEFC chief executive Oliver Yates said.
“The total capacity of the proposed projects is more than 2,000MW. If all these projects proceeded to development, we would see a 10-fold increase in Australia’s large-scale solar capacity. There is clearly strong investor interest in the potential of Australia’s renewable energy sector.”
Project proposals range in size from 15 MW to 200 MW. Queensland has attracted the largest number of projects bids, totaling 980 MW, followed by New South Wales with 620 MW. The CEFC program will offer loans of AU$15 million and above, for projects over 10 MW.Financing Australia’s development of large-scale solar
According to Yates, Australia currently has only four large-scale solar PV developments larger than 10 MW. “Through this financing program, we are looking to accelerate the development of large-scale solar as an important part of our renewable energy capacity,” he said.
Last July,Greg Bourne, chairman of the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (AREA) announced planning another round of funding for large-scale solar plants. Such endeavors will enhance financing capacity in this country’s bid to bridge the gap between the cost of large-scale solar plants in Australia and the US and elsewhere in the world.
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389 MW of solar comes online in Honduras in 2015 to date
Nov 19, 2015 | PV - Magazine
By Blanca Diaz
This rapid pace makes Honduras the largest solar market in Latin America in 2015. Plants commissioned since the first of the year include one larger than 100 MW and another 61 MW.
So far in 2015, solar PV projects with a capacity of 389 MW have come online in Honduras, according to a report by the nation's National Electric Energy Company (ENEE). Solar is the fastest growing power source in the nation, with less than 1 MW connected in 2014.
ENEE reports that the capacity of installed solar has reached 455 MW. The rest of the mix is composed of fossil fuels, with a capacity of 920 MW, hydropower with 632 MW, 175 MW of wind, and 171 MW of biomass power.
These completed PV plants in Honduras are part of 620 MW of projects which are approved to begin operation by the end of next year. The biggest part of this capacity is located in the south of the nation, where there is better solar potential than in other regions.
Among those which have been built is one project larger than 100 MW in the department of Nacaome, built by Cohessa and Soposa. This also includes the 61 MW Aura Solar 2, which was developed by Mexico's Guass Energía in the Choluteca Department.
Among those projects which will be built soon in Honduras is a 53 MW PV project which will be carried out by Norway's Scatec Solar. This project is expected to be commissioned in the third quarter of next year.
In Honduras various self-consumption projects have also been realized this year. This includes the largest solar self-consumption project in Latin America, a 3 MW plant built by local company Smart Solar in the city of San Pedro Sula.
The Honduran government introduced incentives for PV projects in 2013, including tax incentives. Following this, it approved a bonus for the first 300 MW of project which entered service before August 1, 2015. With this, these projects obtained a price around US$0.18 per kilowatt-hour.
While the annual power output of these projects is not yet known, assuming a 20% capacity factor the solar plants already completed will represent more than 10% of annual electricity generation. This is higher portion than any mid-sized to large nation in Europe or on Earth.
Honduras and Chile are the largest solar markets in Latin America in 2015. En Chile around 340 MW of PV projects were commissioned from January through October 2015.
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Obama, Trudeau United on Clean Energy, Climate
Nov 20, 2015 | BNA Daily Environment Report
By Toluse Olorunnipa, Josh Wingrove and Angela Greiling Keane
In their first formal meeting, U.S. President Barack Obama and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau agreed to disagree over Islamic State air strikes while presenting a united front to boost clean-energy production after the rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline.
Obama and the recently elected Trudeau met Nov. 19 in Manila in talks that focused on how the U.S. and Canada are cooperating on trade, energy and climate change. Recent points of tension—including Canada's decision to pull out of a U.S.-led bombing campaign against the Islamic State, Obama's rejection of TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone oil pipeline and brewing trade disputes over lumber and labeling rules—received little emphasis.
“There are no closer friends we have than the Canadians,” Obama said on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, which wrapped up Nov. 19. He said he plans on hosting Trudeau at the White House in early 2016. “We are confident he's going to provide a great boost of energy,” Obama said of his Canadian counterpart.
Trudeau, on his first international trip as prime minister, has said a foreign policy priority is to repair ties with the U.S., which have frayed in recent years over Keystone, country-of-origin labeling rules and other issues. Obama has repeatedly reached out to the young politician whose surprise victory and message of change have given him the kind of celebrity status the U.S. president enjoyed at the start of his term.
Climate Change Commitment
“I just wanted to point out that I had no gray hair when I was in your position seven years ago,” Obama said to Trudeau.
“I don't dwell on the gray hair, because there's nothing I can do about that,” the Canadian leader replied.
Canada's 43-year-old leader, the eldest son of former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, highlighted his commitment to tackling climate change, something Obama has been pushing as leaders prepare for global climate talks late this month in Paris. Trudeau's embrace of policies that curb carbon emissions signal a departure from his predecessor, Stephen Harper, who had been less aggressive in tackling climate change (203 DEN A-14, 10/21/15).
“It's going to be a wonderful time of strength in ties between our two countries,” Trudeau said.
Trudeau—like Harper—favored Keystone, although he took a cautious approach after its rejection and was criticized domestically for not rebuking Obama over the U.S. decision. He continued to tread carefully on the subject Nov. 19, noting that Canada has been seen to be lagging on environmental performance.
Reduction Targets
“One of the first tasks I have on energy and climate issues is to ensure Canadians and others that we are serious about” meeting emissions reduction targets, Trudeau said.
Obama echoed that, saying he was “glad” for both countries having “traditional fuels” but that they need to push more into renewable fuels.
“I also think we have to recognize that if we want to preserve this planet for our kids and our grandkids,” we need cleaner sources of energy, Obama said.
Obama also plans to work with Canada to achieve final ratification of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact, which was negotiated under Harper. Trudeau's Liberals have said they are “resolutely pro-trade” but have not endorsed or opposed the TPP deal, which has drawn warnings in Canada and is opposed by one of the two main opposition parties.
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