China’s President Xi Jinping has called for greater efforts to control carbon emissions, while also stressing the role of fossil fuels in ensuring energy security.
There needs to be better control over energy consumption and a gradual shift toward restricting both the amount and intensity of carbon emissions, Xi said Tuesday at a meeting on deepening reforms, according to a transcript from Xinhua.
China should gradually lower traditional energy’s share on the basis of reliable and safe renewables, and ensure the basic power supply, it was also pointed out at the meeting.
The remarks come before US Climate Envoy John Kerry’s visit to China later this month for talks on global warming ahead of a United Nations climate conference in November.
The shift toward controlling carbon emissions is “highly likely” to be positive for independent renewable power producers, Daiwa Capital Markets said in a note by analysts including Dennis Ip. There will possibly be a value assigned to carbon reduction, and it comes amid recent discussions on reviving the stalled offsets market, he said.
Shares of Longi Green Energy Technology Company, the world’s largest solar panel maker, rose as much as 5.2 per cent in Shanghai on Wednesday. Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Company, China’s biggest wind turbine manufacturer, climbed as much as 1.1 per cent in Hong Kong.
Xi’s focus on emissions comes even as China has ramped up coal production and imports this year in a bid to minimise blackouts. The country has also made efforts to lift crude oil production over the last few years, and is increasingly focused on deepwater drilling in the South China Sea to boost output.
The Chinese leader also stressed at the meeting the need to promote the institutional reform of the oil and gas sector, while ensuring a stable and reliable supply, and accelerate the building of a low-carbon electricity system.
Encouraging domestic oil and gas production was one of the key areas mentioned by Mr Xi, and some of the main beneficiaries of this would be PetroChina Company and Sinopec, Citigroup said in a note. National energy security is one of the top development priorities in China, the bank said.
PetroChina shares were up as much as 3.1 per cent in Hong Kong, while Sinopec rose as much 2 per cent. – Bloomberg
