Category Archives: Environment

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News

Smoggy China shuts down production capacity

Leave a comment

BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) — A huge amount of polluting production capacity was closed in 2015 as part of government efforts to combat persistent haze, an industrial watchdog said Thursday.

About 30 million tonnes of iron and steel production capacity were shut down this year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said in an online statement.

Production capacity for electrolytic aluminum, cement and plate glass was reduced by 300,000 tonnes, 38 million tonnes and 11 million standard cartons, respectively.

Consolidation in the integrated circuit, rare earth and infant formula industries sped up in 2015, according to the statement.

“There was active progress in phasing out outdated and excess production capacity this year,” said the MIIT.

Chinese cities, particularly those around Beijing, have been choked by smog this winter, with factory emissions blamed as one of the major pollutants. Enditem

Business, China, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News

China to lower benchmark on-grid prices of onshore wind power, solar PV power, NDRC

Leave a comment

BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) — China will lower the benchmark on-grid prices of electricity generated by new onshore wind farms and solar PV power plants in a bid to facilitate orderly development of the country’s new energy industry, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on Thursday.

The benchmark on-grid prices of onshore wind power will be lowered by 0.02 yuan/kWh in the first, second and third-class regions and 0.01 yuan/kWh in the fourth-class region in 2016. The prices will be further cut by 0.03 and 0.02 yuan/kWh respectively in 2018.

The benchmark on-grid prices of solar PV power will be slashed by 0.1 yuan/kWh in the first-class region, 0.07 yuan/kWh in the second-class region and 0.02 yuan/kWh in the third-class region in 2016.

In addition, power grid companies will purchase electricity from eligible rooftop distributional solar PV projects at prices equal to the benchmark on-grid prices of local solar PV power plants. (Edited by Huang Xiaolan, huangxiaolan@xinhua.org)

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News

China to offer greater policy support for program to build low-carbon cities and towns, NDRC

Leave a comment

BEIJING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) – China is going to work out detailed supporting policies for the program to pilot low-carbon cities and towns, formulate a related assessment index system, and offer greater financial support, said Su Wei, head of the Bureau of Addressing Climate Change under the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

So far, the implementation plans for piloting low-carbon programs in eight cities and towns have taken shape, and are going through argumentation by experts.

To push forward the pilot low-carbon programs, the Bureau of Addressing Climate Change would approve pilot plans and promote launching of these pilot programs. (Edited by Li Xiaohui, lixh@xinhua.org)

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News, World News

China inks nuclear power partnership deal with Thailand

Leave a comment

  GUANGZHOU, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) — China and Thailand reached an agreement Wednesday to cooperate on a nuclear power project in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) announced on Thursday.

According to the agreement, CGN, Guangxi Investment Group Co. Ltd., and Thailand’s Ratchaburi Electricity Generating Holding Public Company Limited (RATCH), a subsidiary of the state-owned Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, will team up to establish a joint venture to develop, construct and operate the second phase of the nuclear power plant in Fangchenggang City.

The project is a pilot site for Hualong One nuclear power technology, the country’s third-generation nuclear reactor design, which was jointly designed by CGN and China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC).

Rum Herabat, chief executive officer of RATCH, said the project has the support of the Thai government. He said he hopes cooperation with China will help Thailand train talent and gain experience in nuclear power development.

The project will also serve as a bridgehead for China’s nuclear power technology to expand in the ASEAN market.  Enditem

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, News

China Exclusive: China builds 3rd largest hydropower station on Yangtze River

Leave a comment

 

 KUNMING, Dec. 24 (Xinhua) — China on Thursday started construction of its third largest hydropower station on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

The Wudongde project, located upstream from two other hydropower stations on the Jinsha River, the upper section of the Yangtze, is the world’s 7th largest in operation or under construction, said Lu Chun, chairman of the China Three Gorges Corporation.

The project has a designed capacity of 10.2 gigawatts and will be able to generate 38.9 billion kwh of electricity per year after its 12 generating units start operation, Lu said.

The first unit is expected to start operating in August 2020 and all are expected to be operational by the end of 2021, he said.

The project, which was approved by the State Council on Dec. 16, is estimated to cost more than 100 billion yuan (15.4 billion U.S. dollars), Lu said.

A 270-meter-high dam will be built to block the river to form a reservoir that can store about 7.4 billion cubic meters of water.

The project’s construction will require more than 16,000 workers in the next few years.

Meanwhile, about 31,000 residents in 10 counties and districts in the southwestern provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan will be relocated to make room for the project.

Lu said that, as a major project that transfers power from the resource-rich west to the industrial east, it will also help adjust the country’s energy mix and reduce pollutant emissions.

China still relies heavily on coal to power its economy and is seeking to increase the clean energy share as it is faced with worsening air pollution.

The project can help reduce coal consumption by 12.2 million tonnes and cut carbon dioxide emissions by 30.5 million tonnes and sulfur dioxide emissions by 104,000 tonnes per year, he said.

Situated between Luquan County in Yunnan and Huidong County in Sichuan, it can help create about 70,000 jobs for locals per year during construction. After it starts operating, it can bring 1.35 billion yuan in revenues for local governments annually.

Authorities have invested more than 900 million yuan in environmental protection in the area, and many precious species of trees have been transplanted, he said.

The other two hydropower stations on Jinsha River are Xiluodu and Xiangjiaba. Both started operating in July 2014.

Xiluodu is the country’s second largest, with power-generating capacity of 12.6 gigawatts. It had generated more than 100 billion kwh of electricity as of November.

The Three Gorges hydropower project is the country’s largest, with a generating capacity of 22.4 gigawatts in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River.

Baihetan, a fourth hydropower project planned on the Jinsha River, has yet to receive the final government go-ahead.  Enditem

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News

China Voice: China allows no compromise on cyberspace sovereignty

1 Comment

WUZHEN, Zhejiang, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) — At the opening of the second World Internet Conference on Wednesday, China made sure its voice was heard: Every country has the right to create its own Internet governance model, and the cyber sovereignty of all nations should be respected.

China firmly opposes Internet hegemony, foreign interference in internal affairs, and incitement that could threaten national security, President Xi Jinping said during his opening remarks at the conference.

The Internet is not beyond law and it should be ruled in accordance with a country’s laws and regulations.

There are certain common principles in cyberspace that all countries should follow to assure win-win outcomes, however, each country is unique and its Internet governance models will reflect this.

Some countries have been preaching “absolute” freedom in cyberspace for years. Ironically, they exercise the strictest surveillance when national interests may be harmed.

China has about four million websites and 668 million Internet users. According to the Cyberspace Administration of China, 30 billion pieces of information are created every day.

The Chinese government and IT companies trawl the Internet looking for online rumors, pornography, gambling and other cyber crimes to protect the lawful interests of its citizens.

Although China has amassed the world’s largest Internet population since the Internet arrived in 1994, it remains a latecomer, and there is still much to fully tap the potential of the Internet.

Particularly, China is a major victim of cyber hacking as many deem it a rising threat.

There is no “absolute” freedom in either the physical world or cyberspace. Freedom and order must be upheld side by side. Freedom is the purpose and order is the means.

China applies rule of law to the Internet with the enacting of new laws and regulations regarding cyber security and other Internet areas.

These laws not only provide the legal basis for counter-cyber crime work, but also guarantee the lawful interests of Internet users and companies at home and abroad.

Economic opening up and effective governance of the Internet by law have played key roles in the growth of China’s Internet sector over the past two decades.

And China’s Internet regulators have repeatedly promised to give freedom to those who abide by the country’s laws and regulations and help them achieve bigger success. Enditem

Editor   Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Chinese circle, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, News

China Voice: The world needs fresh rules for Internet governance

Leave a comment

   BEIJING, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) — How and what to regulate on the Internet has been a concern throughout the world as booming Internet business continues connecting countries.

The quest for a solution reveals existing Internet governance is far from impeccable in reflecting the desires and interests of the majority of countries.

Like the real world, cyberspace, with about 3.2 billion users worldwide, should be a domain of freedom and order.

Rules, which are by no means set to harm the open and democratic nature of the Internet, should be in place to safeguard the users’ rights and interests including exchanging ideas and expressing their minds.

Addressing the second World Internet Conference, President Xi Jinping highlighted a number of principles for reforming how the Internet is governed globally, including respect for cyber sovereignty, maintenance of peace and security, promotion of openness and cooperation and cultivation of good order.

The president said the world has a desire to establish a governance system which is multilateral, democratic and transparent.

The speech has received favorable reviews from people at home and abroad, including World Economic Forum founder and executive chairman Klaus Schwab, who said Xi’s remarks on open cyberspace reflected the need for global cooperation.

As globalization and cultural diversification further deepen, the role the Internet plays in boosting human progress will be greater. Meanwhile, concerns including the information gap between nations and the spread of terrorist messages and hacker attacks are growing more severe.

Only by pushing forward the reform of the existing Internet governance can the cyberspace grow to be an arena that will benefit the people instead of troubling them.

Since nations differ in size in cyberspace as in real world, the principle of sovereign equality must be upheld as a prerequisite for governance reforms and cooperation.

In this sense, the right of individual countries to independently choose their own path of cyber development and regulation while participating in international cyberspace governance on an equal footing should be respected, in addition to putting cyberspace under rule of law.

Confronted with pressure from economic downturn and the lingering global financial crisis, a stable and prosperous cyberspace means a lot to all the nations in the world.

Further regulations should be made to prevent it from degenerating into a battlefield or a hotbed for crime.

Indeed, with a vision of jointly building a community of shared future, cyberspace should be better governed so it can benefit more people and serve as an engine and catalyst for innovation and economic development. Enditem

 Editor Xuefei Chen Axelsson

 

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News, World News

China Exclusive: China set for leading role in Industry 4.0: Klaus Schwab

Leave a comment

  WUZHEN, Zhejiang, Dec. 17 (Xinhua)– China is going to play a leading role in the new wave of economic activities and technological innovation, World Economic Forum founder and executive chair Klaus Schwab told Xinhua in an exclusive interview during the ongoing Second World Internet Conference (WIC).

“The Internet is already part of culture and we should learn to use it to promote global cultural exchanges,” he said.

As a speaker at the opening ceremony of WIC, Schwab found that he shared many ideas of Internet development with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“The most important one is that we should keep the Internet open and we have to work together on the global level,” he said, noting it needs the dedication of governments, businesses and individuals to shape the Internet in such a way that everybody has access and that the Internet can really serve as an engine and catalyst for economic development.

In his observation, the Fourth Industrial Revolution featuring technology such as artificial intelligence, robotics, 3D printing and nanotechnology is coming our way at an overwhelming speed.

Schwab said China has already established a foothold in many areas and looks set to continue. However, China must ensure the transition from low-end manufacturing to modern industry is successful to sustain this path.

“The ‘Internet Plus’ and ‘Made in China 2015’ [strategies] show that China is going right toward that direction,” Schwab added.

Schwab pointed out that a big task will be ensuring equal assess to the Internet. The digital divide is a problem both across the world and it must be addressed on a global level.

“China has good preconditions to bridge the digital divide and help other countries enhance information infrastructure,” said Schwab citing China’s huge population with Internet access and the current developments regarding 5G.

To cope with the challenges to governance brought about by the current technological shift, Schwab suggested a more agile approach to government-private-expert cooperation to create the optimal conditions for smart technology and service orientated design, both hallmarks of Industry 4.0, as the Fourth Industrial Revolution is also known.

Looking ahead, Schwab pictures a future where a sensor implanted in our body will help us control objects around us. Industry 4.0 will change the way we work, too, as we will no longer be held back by geographical limitations, the world will be our office.

“We will have richer social lives […] and most importantly a greener environment where we can breathe fresh air every day. It’s not fiction and its not far away,” Schwab said. Enditem

 Editor   Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Green-tech, Indepth, World News

Steel industry to face unprecedented bankruptcy, M&A tide

Leave a comment

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) — China is mulling over more efficient measures to eliminate excess capacities in the steel, electrolytic aluminum, cement and shipbuilding industries, making those industries face an unprecedented tide of bankruptcy, mergers and acquisitions.

The National Development and Reform Commission(NDRC) and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology are making policies on the issue based on proactive long-term investigations, the Economic Information Daily quoted an unnamed source as saying.

Apart from controlling the launch of new projects and punishing those unapproved ones, the government will raise the industry thresholds in terms of energy consumption, environmental protection examinations, bank credit and an accountability system, to make the fittest survive.

The central government will also take local investment and employment into consideration when creating the withdrawal mechanism for excess capacities.

As Chinese economy transforms from an investment-pulled growth to an innovation, science and technology-driven one, the basic industries such as steel must adjust with it, said Xu Xiangchun, head of the information department of MySteel.

Currently, Chinese demand for steel is approaching the ceiling. As the economic restructuring further drags down steel demand and banks stop lending money to the sector, it is expected more and more steel mills will face a capital chain rupture, Xu added. Enditem

Editor Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Chinese circle, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Indepth, News, Opinion, World News

Sweden faces housing shortage crisis: senior economist Eklund

Leave a comment

By Xuefei Chen Axelsson

STOCKHOLM, Dec. 19(Greenpost)–Klas Eklund, Chairman of the Swedish Housing Crisis Committee, SEB bank senior economist has said that Sweden has faced a shortage of houses leading to a shortage crisis.

DSC_5258

“It is definitely a crisis in a sense that there are not enough housing, We have had a great inflow of refugee from middle east, asylum seekers. And a combination of lack of construction and low mobility on real estate market means we have an urgent crisis of houses today,” said Eklund.

He made a presentation again at a seminar held by Swedish Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm recently.  Leading the Swedish Housing Crisis Committee, they published a report about housing situation in Sweden in June 2014. The report had been presented to the government, but it seemed not enough attention or action to be given.

DSC_5295According to his report, Sweden has been building houses and the number of houses have been doubled. However, the demand is increasing drastically due to the rapid influx of refugees.

“We have a lack of housing and that housing prices are pushed up rapidly . Some people even believe there is a crash, I don’t believe in that, but there is numerous kinds of problems. Very high prices in the cities, and a huge influx of immigrants and too low constructions,” said Eklund.

Being asked about what measures can be taken or what kind of suggestions he has made, Eklund said:

“I think a number of things have to be done, we havet to stimulate construction and make it easier by easing up the regulatory process which is common in Swedish municipalities. I also think you have to change the tax system. Now the sales tax is very high and there is so low mobility in the market. Further more when it comes to rental apartment, there is a regulation, ceiling for rents, which means it is not profitable to build rental apartments. Not profitable enough,” said Eklund.

China is famous for building faster. When being asked if Chinese developers can help ease the situation, Eklund said he is happy to see them to come and try.

” I am happy to see them to come and try. I definitely welcome them. There is already a lack of construction workers. I think a lot of politicians and decision-makers would welcome Chinese construction workers. But the problem is the Swedish labor market which has a very high minimium wages and it is very strict. Rent control and building permit. Process from planning to construction takes very long time,” he warned.

DSC_5262Olle Zetterberg, CEO of Stockholm Business Region agrees with Eklund.

 

“I think he is totally right. Housing crisis here in Stockholm and other major cities is the major threat to our otherwise good economy. We have a very good growth rate. The problem is  if we can house so many people. We have so many refugees coming to Sweden, we have to house them. They can’t stay in tents for a long time,” said Zetterberg.

He said  the problem is shortage of housing.

“We have to do a lot of things, financial regulation, tax change. It is not a quick fix, it is a long term issue, ” Zetterberg said.

He held that changes must be done at national and governmental level. People in the parliament and government have to do more to change the tax, change the rules and make it easy to move or to build. The current regulations are so easy to stop people from building.

He also thinks it is not bad if there are Chinese bidders coming to build. He also complained that the workers rules are too strict for companies to hire people.

DSC_5285Hans Lind, professor in economics at Swedish Royal Institute of Technology or KTH said that is definite that there is a shortage of housing in Sweden. The question is whether it should be built by the municipalities or by private developers.

DSC_5271Lennart Weiss from Veidekke, a Norweigian builder said he was very disappointed at the non-action by government.

He agreed with Eklund’s proposal and called on the government, no matter it is the red-green ruling parties or the blue alliance opposition to join hands to solve the housing shortage problem.

“Sweden has a tradition that various parties can make compromise in key issues and find a better solution,” Weiss said.

Swedish population is expected to surpass the ten million record due to the influx of refugees late this year.

DSC_5266About 100 people from various real estate related companies, universities, banks and parties and government attended the seminar.

Photo by Xuefei Chen Axelsson

 

Dear readers: if you have any comments or suggestions, write to us,

info@greenpost.se,  or

c/o  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Drejargatan 1

11342

Stockholm.

0708261336

Business, China, Chinese circle, culture, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News, World News

Feature: Tu Youyou: Artemisinin, gift from traditional Chinese medicine to world

Leave a comment

STOCKHOLM, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) — Artemisinin, the most effective drug that combat malaria today is “a gift from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to the world”, said Tu Youyou, in her presentation at Nobel Lectures in Physiology or Medicine in Stockholm on Monday.

IMG_9403 (1)   In the half-hour-long lecture at Karolinska Institutet in central Stockholm with full participation of a thousand audience, Tu detailed a vivid story in the 1970s of how a group of Chinese researchers despite various challenges successfully developed a cure to treat malaria.

Tu won 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for her discoveries concerning a novel therapy against Malaria, artemisinin.

Drawn from valuable research experiences in developing artemisinin, Tu believes “Chinese medicine and pharmacology are a great treasure-house”, which “should be explored and raised to a higher level.”

“Since ‘tasting hundred herbs by Shen Nong’, China has accumulated substantial experience in clinical practice, integrated and summarized medical application of most nature resource over the last thousands of years through Chinese medicine,” Tu said.

“Adopting, exploring, developing and advancing these practices would allow us to discover more novel medicines beneficial to the world healthcare,” Tu stressed.

“The sun along the mountain bows; The Yellow River seawards flows; You will enjoy a grander sight; By climbing to a greater height!” Tu quoted a poem from China’s Tang Dynasty in her speech.

“Let’s reach to a greater height to appreciate Chinese culture and find the beauty and treasure in the territory of traditional Chinese medicine!” She said.

DSC_4622   “I enjoyed it very much, it’s fascinating story when she recalled how she went back to TCM and found this method that’s so very important for mankind,” Lars Heikensten of the Nobel Foundation told Xinhua, “it’s truly enjoyable moment.”

Despite Tu presented in Chinese and had her English version in PPT on background screen, Jan Lindsten, emeritus professor and former Secretary-General of Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine, understood and enjoyed very well.

“She made a very mature comparison between modern pharmacology and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), which I think is extremely important and well worth to pursue in future to find treasure from TCM in developing new drugs,” Lindsten told Xinhua.

“I am quite sure we will have future medicine comes from nature!” Birgitta Rigler, head of the Rehabilitation Clinic in Dandryd’s Hospital in Stockholm, told Xinhua.

“Chemical industry may be faster in developing new drugs, but perhaps nature-based things are more durable,” she said. Enditem

 

Business, China, Chinese circle, culture, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News, Opinion, Sport, World News

China Focus: New engines to bolster growth in next 5 years

Leave a comment

   BEIJING, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) — To ensure a medium-high level of economic growth for the next five years, China has moved to foster new growth engines as old ones lose steam.

China’s exports dropped by 3.7 percent in November, the fifth straight month of decline, to 1.25 trillion yuan (195 million U.S. dollars), customs data showed Tuesday.

In recent years, old growth engines, including exports and investment, lost momentum partly due to weak demand at home and overseas. The country’s quarterly GDP growth slowed to a six-year low of 6.9 percent in the third quarter of this year.

In the next five years, the country’s annual growth rate should be no less than 6.5 percent to realize the goal of doubling the GDP and per capita income of 2010 by 2020.

To attain that goal, the government must cultivate new growth engines to bolster growth in the next five years.

EMERGING INDUSTRIES

As traditional industries including steel, coal and cement sectors are facing excessive capacity, China is moving to tap the potential of new industries with bright prospects.

A proposal for formulating the country’s 13th five-year plan unveiled last month said that China will step up researches on core technology concerning the new generation of telecommunications, new energy, new material and aviation, and support the development of new industries, including energy conservation, biotechnology and information technology sectors.

In Changzhou, a city in eastern China’s Jiangsu Province, there are more than 50 companies producing graphene, a new material that widely used in high-end equipment manufacturing, forming a national level production base for the material. Products made by Changzhou Tanyuan Technology Co. are used in smartphones. The company’s sales have risen from 6 million yuan to more than 200 million yuan in only three years.

Qi Chengyuan, head of the high-tech division of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said China will turn new strategic industries into major driving forces for economic growth in the next five years.

The country should form five new pillar industries that each have a potential of becoming a 10 trillion yuan industry, including information technology, bioindustry, green industry, high-end equipment and material, as well as the creative industry, Qi said.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION

New impetus must also come from the government’s emphasis on mass entrepreneurship and innovation.

In the first three quarters, China’s newly registered companies rose 19.3 percent to 3.16 million, as the country pushed for easier registration to promote innovation.

Innovation is the most important impetus for China’s growth, according to the proposal for formulating the 13th five-year plan.

A good example is the strong growth in Shenzhen, a national demonstration zone for independent innovation. In the first 10 months, the proportion of R&D investment in Shenzhen’s regional GDP was more than 4 percent, nearly doubles the national average.

The city’s economic growth stood at 8.7 percent in the first three quarters, higher than the country’s growth of 6.9 percent in the same period.

imagesThe Shenzhen-based Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. has set up 16 overseas R&D institutions and owns a total of 76,687 patents, said its CEO Ren Zhengfei.

The company realized a sales volume of 288 billion yuan last year. Ren forecast that the company will more than double that sales figure by 2019 on the back of constant innovation.

Song Weiguo, researcher with the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology for Development, said that technological innovation will provide greater impetus for growth in the next five years.

REFORMS ON SUPPLY SIDE

Structural reforms on the supply side will lend more steam to sustainable growth, President Xi Jinping said last month at a meeting of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs.

Xu Lin, head of the NDRC’s planning division, said reforms on the supply side, which means sustainable growth instead of short-term demand management, is necessary for cultivating new growth impetus.

An important aspect of supply side reforms is government efforts to streamlining administrative approvals and delegating power to lower levels.

From early 2013 to the end of September 2015, the central government has canceled or delegated 586 kinds of administrative approval.

In the economic and technological development zone of Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the bureau in charge of administrative approvals cut the red tape and reduced the time needed for getting an approval from more than 300 days to 20 days.

On the supply side, China should maintain structural tax reductions to boost the service and advanced manufacturing sectors and support small enterprises, and push forward entrepreneurship and innovation, Premier Li Keqiang said earlier this month.

China will keep cutting red tape to foster emerging industries and speed up the overhaul in traditional industries to improve efficiency, Li said.

With new impetus from China’s reform pushes, the country will be able to realize an average annual growth of 6.5 percent in the next five years, said Yu Bin, researcher with the Development Research Center of the State Council. Enditem

 

 

Business, China, Chinese circle, culture, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News, Opinion, Sport, World News

China Focus: China’s local gov’ts eye “Belt and Road” construction in 2016-2020

2 Comments

BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) — Nearly 20 provincial governments in China have rolled out their local development plans for the 13th Five Year Plan period from 2016 to 2020, with their focus on the “Belt and Road” construction, the Shanghai Securities News reported on Friday.

Under their development plans, they attach great importance to infrastructure construction in transportation industry and construction of industrial parks.

 

— Focus on transport infrastructure

Chinese local governments will give priority to transport infrastructure when promoting the “Belt and Road” initiative.

For example, Shaanxi province will be guide by construction of a logistics center to build a seamless transport network in 2016-2020. Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region also said in its proposal to the 13th Five Year plan that it will build a convenient and efficient railway network, expressway network, water transport network, airline network and information network with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and neighboring provinces.

It is worth noting that in the land transportation field, the China-Europe express railway will play an increasingly important role in “going global” of Chinese goods.

As a core area of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, Fujian province plans to build important airline hubs for Southeast Asia and advance construction of a regional port-shipping system and communication network facilities, to smoothly connect the land channel of the Silk Road Economic Belt and form a passage to sea for central and western China’s opening-up.

Jilin province in its 13th Five Year plan noted that it will actively explore the Arctic Ocean ship routes linking the Europe and the U.S.A., steadily operate international rail and water transportation lines linking Japan and South Korea, and further expand its outward transport lines.

Meanwhile, Tianjin will make full use of its unique geographic location advantages to vigorously promote port and maritime strategic cooperation. It will develop cross-border logistics through three land ports, like the Khorgos Port and develop maritime transport through intensive ship routes and shipping flights.

Zhejiang province announced to promote construction of a marine economic development demonstration zone and Zhoushan Islands New Area, and build a port economic circle covering the Yangtze River Delta, influencing the Yangtze River economic belt and serving the “Belt and Road” initiative.

In addition, Gansu province decided to invest more than 800 billion yuan from this year to build more than 70,000 km of roads and railways in six years.

 

— Efforts in industrial park construction

Industrial park construction is also a focus in the 13th Five Year plans of the provinces.

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region said that it will accelerate construction of core areas in the Silk Road Economic Belt, develop high-level open economy, and quicken the pace to build the Kashgar and Khorgos economic development zones and comprehensive bonded zones.

Because of the “Belt and Road” initiative, ALaShankou has invested a lot in infrastructure, promoting rapid development of its comprehensive bonded zone, said Pan Zeming, deputy director of the ALaShankou Comprehensive Bonded Zone.

In its 13th Five Year plan, Fujian province made it clear to promote construction of important commodity export bases, commodity markets and commerce and trade parks and explore mutual establishment of industrial parks with Southeast Asian countries.

Chongqing municipality pointed out that it will actively participate in construction of overseas industrial agglomerations and economic and trade cooperation zones.

Shaanxi province said it will encourage and support competent enterprises to go abroad for transnational operation and strategic acquisitions and build Shaanxi industrial parks overseas especially in Central Asia and Africa. Meanwhile, it will also build economic cooperation zones and high-tech industrial parks to attract investments of the transnational companies and globally leading enterprises and persuade them to build regional headquarters and branches in Shaanxi.

“Industrial park is an important method for “going global” of Chinese enterprises. It is a new form for Chinese enterprises to build “Belt and Road” and also a way to change simple cargo transportation”, said Hu Zheng, chief representative of the Central Asia Representative Office of the China Merchants Group.

Since the beginning of the year, China has quickened its pace of building industrial parks along the “Belt and Road” countries.

Data of the Ministry of Commerce shows that so far, China has already built 118 economic and trade cooperation zones in 50 countries, of which 77 zones are located in 23 countries along the “Belt and Road”. Enditem

 

 

 

Business, China, Chinese circle, culture, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, Indepth, News, Opinion, World News

Xinhua Insight: China to start reform focused on quality of life

Leave a comment

 BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) — With China’s 13th Five-year Plan beginning next year, the focus of reform will start with addressing the quality of ordinary people’s lives.

At the latest meeting of the central leading group for comprehensively deepening reform on Wednesday, the leadership decided to implement the five development ideas put forward at the plenary session of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee in late October: innovation, coordination, sharing, environmental protection and openness.

At the beginning of the 13th Five-year Plan, efforts need to be “focused on building a moderately prosperous society,” said a statement issued after Wednesday’s meeting.

The group approved several reform measures, one of which is that unregistered citizens are to be given household registration permits known as “hukou,” a crucial document entitling them to social welfare.

China has around 13 million unregistered people, one percent of the entire population. They include orphans and second children born illegally during the period of strict enforcement of the one-child policy, the homeless and those who have yet to apply for one or who have simply lost theirs. Those parents who violated family planning policy often refrained from getting hukou for their children to avoid fines.0   “It is a basic legal right for Chinese citizens to register for hukou. It is also a premise for participation in social affairs, to enjoy rights and fulfill duties,” the statement said.

Wan Haiyuan with an institute of macro-economics of the National Development and Reform Commission said the difficulty lies not in hukou itself, but in related matters such as healthcare, health insurance and education.

In China, various social benefits such as medical insurance and access to basic education are based on this permit and are supposed to be in line with long-term places of work and residence.

Many people without household registration have moved to cities and become tramps. According to Wan, their birth certificates might have been lost and authorities must address this issue. Those who have come to China to seek asylum should also be taken into consideration, as they are permanent residents, despite their lack of Chinese nationality.

Education is also central to plans for the next five years, said Zhang Li, director of the Ministry of Education’s development center. The reform meeting statement declared that education should advance innovation-driven development and serve the objectives of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Zhang added the statement showed that opening up in education should take the concepts and experience of developed countries as reference.

The meeting decided to integrate basic medical insurance for urban employees and the new rural cooperative medical scheme, creating a unified basic health insurance system.

Currently China has three separate medical insurance schemes — basic medical insurance for urban employees; the new rural cooperative medical scheme; and basic medical insurance for city dwellers not covered by the first two schemes, mainly the young or unemployed.

The three schemes have been perceived as unequal for a long time, as the benefits in urban areas are much greater than those in rural parts of the country.

“Even members in one family may have different health insurance,” said Meng Qingyue, a professor in health economics with the Peking University. “The integration of different medical insurance schemes is a must for achieving equal access to basic health care for every one.”

Another measure is the reform of government’s “power list.” Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC in late 2012, administrative powers have been streamlined and delegated, with hundreds of items abandoned.

Ma Qingyu of the Chinese Academy of Governance said the power and responsibility list system can clarify responsibilities of different departments and prevent them from shirking their responsibilities or taking responsibilities that are not rightfully theirs.

“It will make the border between public powers and private rights more clear,” said Ma. Enditem

 

 

 

Business, China, Energy, Environment, Exchange, Green-tech, News, Opinion

China should optimize investment structure in energy sector in 2016-2020, expert

Leave a comment

BEIJING, Dec. 8 (Greenpost) — China should accelerate construction to raise the weight of clean energy like natural gas, nuclear power, hydropower, wind power and solar energy during the 13th Five-year Plan period (2016-2020), according to an article by Zhou Dadi, a senior researcher at Energy Research Institute under the National Development and Reform Commission, carried on Shanghai Securities News on Tuesday.

Zhou said that energy investment structure of the country should be optimized under state-level planning, industrial self-discipline construction and regional arrangement. China should reduce coal mining and construction of coal-fired power plants and develop low carbon energy instead of high carbon energy, the expert noted.

Source Xinhua,  Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson