The International (U.S.-China) Forum on Clean Energy Cooperation was successfully held in Beijing on March 26. Jointly organized by the U.S.-China Energy Cooperation Program (ECP) and the Institute of Energy at Peking University, the forum received strong support from the Commercial Services of U.S. Embassy Beijing, the U.S. Department of Energy China Office, the China Electricity Council, the Beijing Carbon Neutrality Society, the China Hydrogen Alliance, and the American Chamber of Commerce in China. Nearly 150 representatives from companies, research institutions, and industry associations participated, including AspenTech, Baker Hughes, Eaton Electric, Emerson, S&P, Mitsubishi, Boeing, ICF, Howden, Energy Institute of State Grid, Foran Technology Group, HyGreen Energy, China Energy Investment Corporation, Beijing Gas Group, CNPC Economics and Technology Research Institute, China Energy Research Society, and the Institute of Electrical Engineering at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Experts and guests discussed the latest technological advancements and prospects for U.S.-China cooperation in clean energy, focusing on achieving a cleaner energy transition while exploring new opportunities and challenges for international energy cooperation.
The forum was moderated by Mr. Michael Hart, President of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, with opening remarks by Ms. Cathy Feig, Principle Commercial Officer of Commercial Services, U.S. Embassy Beijing. She highlighted the longstanding dedication of both the U.S. and China to promoting clean energy development and noted that the leaders of both nations have repeatedly underscored their commitment to advancing international clean energy cooperation. She expressed hope for further progress in U.S.-China clean energy collaboration.
In the keynote session, Dr. An Fengquan from Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Ms. Kaitlin Oujo, Deputy Director of the U.S. Department of Energy China Office, and Dr. Yang Lei from Peking University’s Institute of Energy presented their insights.
Dr. An emphasized that international cooperation in promoting energy transformation is imperative, noting that achieving dual carbon goals presents substantial challenges. He mentioned that global CO₂ emissions hit a new high in 2023, intensifying climate change pressures. Dr. An also detailed China’s recent progress in renewable energy development and noted that clean energy investments in developing countries have fallen short in recent years, analyzing the reasons behind this. He concluded with hopes for more effective international cooperation in clean energy.
Ms. Kaitlin Oujo provided an overview of the U.S. clean energy policies and achievements, including the strategies the U.S. government employs to meet its carbon emissions goals. She discussed the U.S. government’s 21st-century industrial strategy, which rests on four pillars to ensure government support for clean energy, incentivize private sector investment, and offer tax reductions. Ms. Kaitlin Oujo also referenced the 2022 discussions between President Biden and President Xi on bilateral climate issues, reaffirming commitments to addressing the global climate crisis as highlighted in the “Sunshine State” statement.
Dr. Yang Lei, Deputy President of Institute of Energy, Peking University, analyzed the opportunities and challenges of large-scale renewable energy integration, emphasizing that China’s energy transition momentum is both unstoppable and irreversible. He noted that both China and the U.S. lead globally in clean energy advancements, with significant breakthroughs due to declining renewable energy costs and scaling commercialization. While acknowledging challenges in technical cooperation, Dr. Yang highlighted significant explorations in policy, market design, project implementation, and business models and voiced confidence in expanding collaboration. With renewable energy’s growing share, he also stressed the need for China to enhance system flexibility, strengthen grid infrastructure, and advance demand response and new business models.
Baker Hughes’ hydrogen energy solutions expert, Mr. Giovanni Sarti, and International Energy Agency analyst, Mr. Francesco Pavan, shared online perspectives on hydrogen turbine roles in decarbonizing industrial and energy sectors and on hydrogen energy’s development in international markets.
In the dialogue session, six experts discussed “Key Challenges and Opportunities for Global Clean Energy Cooperation.” The panel was moderated by Grace Chen, Co-Chair of the American Chamber of Commerce in China’s Energy Committee and Senior Director of Solutions Consulting at AspenTech China. Panelists included Mr. Wang Zihao, Assistant General Manager of HyGreen Energy, Dr. Xie Yuxuan, Service General Manager of Eaton’s Critical Power Digitalization and Service Business, Dr. Chen Jinfang, Deputy General Manager of Foran Technology Group, Mr. Yuan Bo, Director of the Energy Institute of State Grid, and Ms. Peng Chengyao, Global Power and Renewables Research Director at S&P Global Commodity Insights. They shared insights on topics such as AI and digital twin technologies for renewable energy expansion, the role and potential of green hydrogen, storage technology’s support for renewable energy industries, large-scale gas company strategies under dual carbon goals, power supply security, and China’s opportunities and challenges in clean energy.
In closing, Ms. Sue Wang, Vice President of Government Affairs at Honeywell China and Co-Chair of the American Chamber of Commerce in China’s Energy Committee, noted that ECP, as a platform for government-business dialogue, aims to foster more cooperation projects among companies. She stressed that international cooperation is essential for energy transition and addressing shared global challenges, adding that through the ECP platform, stakeholders can jointly contribute to energy transition efforts and the global climate crisis.
