14 CHINA INVESTMENT
Issue3、
4, February 2022 15
中国投资
2022年2月第3、
4期
Covid-19 crisis saw a shift in the balance of
economic avtivity away from less energy
intensive services such as hospitality and
energy efficiency enhancements slowed, with
energy intensity improvements falling to 0.5%
at the global level. While the recent economic
recovery brings the rate of improvement back
to its ten year average, it is still only half of
what is needed to put the world on track to
reach net zero emissions by mid-century.
The report also examined over 40 energy
efficiency actions based on the IEA’s Net
Zero by 2050 Roadmap, to help countries
achieve efficiency goals to limit the global
temperature rise to 1.5 °C. This roadmap
recognises that different countries will be
moving at different speeds and will also
choose different options based on national
resources and circumstances. For energy
effcieincy such actions include scaling up
use of mature technologies in buildings,
appliances, transport and industry.
Many of these actions are already
being pursued as part of China’s industrial
enterprises programmes. For example,
encouraging best available technology
for electric motors is key as they account
for approximately 65% of total electricity
consumption in China.
Expanding the scope of efficiency
programmes to include more manufacturing
sectors – such as vehicles, machinery, food,
timber and textiles – also offers large scope
for efficiency gains. This is because more
than 90% of heat demand in light industry
is low and medium temperature, which can
be more easily switched from fossil fuels
to more efficient electric processes, such
as heat pumps. This compares with heavy
industry such as steel and cement where
electrification potential is more limited.
In China, the 14th FYP (2021-2025)
includes a target to reduce carbon intensity
by 18% by 2025 and a target for reducing
energy intensity by 13.5%. This compares
with a 15% energy intensity reduction target
over the 2016-2020 period. As in many
countries, slowing economic growth due
to the pandemic and a shift towards more
energy intensive sectors of the economy
as restrictions reduce activity in sectors
such as hospitality and tourism has slowed
energy intensity improvements in China.
The challenge for policy makers is to
develop and implement policies that can
both support economic growth and enhance
environmental protection. Energy efficiency-
related spending offers this solution, making
up around two-thirds of all clean energy and
sustainable recovery spending, according
to the IEA Sustainable Recovery Tracker.
While China’s past results have been
impressive, the recent slowdown in intensity
improvements, combined with goals to
achieve carbon neutrality, makes lifting
efficiency efforts more important than ever.
Doubling the efficiency of new
appliances by 2030 is possible
and the focus of the world’s
largest ever international energy
efficiency initiative
Efficiency standards and labels have
been shown to reduce electricity demand
by the equivalent of the total electricity
generation of wind and solar energy in the
nine countries and regions for which the
data are available. Such standards have been
in place longer in the European Union and
United States, but China is catching up.
The implementation of standards in China
is already helping avoid around 5% of
total national electricity consumption each
year, reducing annual CO2 emissions by
80 million tonnes. These savings will grow,
as old stock is replaced by more efficient
equipment though standards need to be
continually ratcheted up to optimise savings.
Along with 21 other governments,
China is a member of the Super-efficient
Appliance Deployment (SEAD) Initiative
– a collaboration with the IEA and other
partners to accelerate and strengthen the
design and implementation of appliance
energy efficiency policies.
Such international collaboration enables
governments to design standards based on
global best practice. For example, in November
2021, the IEA and the COP26 Presidency
launched the COP26 Product Efficiency Call to
Action to double the efficiency of key appliances
by 2030 – particularly for lighting, industrial
electric motor systems, air conditioning and
refrigeration. The initiative aims to help countries
raise ambition faster and at a lower cost.
Electric mobility start-ups raise
more money than other sectors,
with strongest activity in China
and the United States
Venture capital (VC) activity can help
track progress of clean energy innovation.
While governments typically account for most
early-stage research and development (R&D)
budgets, energy companies focus on later
stages including for demonstration and product
development. Among them, start-ups can be
more agile than larger companies in developing
new innovative ideas and concepts based on
consumer demand. This is particularly true for
mass-produced products such as appliances,
lighting or heating and cooling technologies,
which have smaller unit sizes and may thus
be less capital intensive to develop and have
shorter time-to-market than other larger or
more complex energy technologies.
OBSERVATION AND REFLECTION 观察与思考
Impact of energy efficiency standards and labelling programmes in selected
countries and regions, 2018
IEA and 4E TCP. All rights reserved.
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