From Red to Green: China's Awkward Embrace of Alternative Energy

China's rapid development is creating a demand for electricity that far outpaces the ability of suppliers to insert alternative energy sources -- those with fewer greenhouse gas emissions -- into the supply chain.

1 minute read

October 25, 2007, 12:00 PM PDT

By veracity

"These are the realities faced by companies seeking to make themselves more environmentally friendly in China, where coal is king. Coal-fired plants are quick and cheap to build and easy to run. While the Chinese government has set goals for increasing the use of a long list of alternative energies - including wind, biomass, hydroelectric, solar and nuclear - they all face obstacles, from bureaucracy to bottlenecks in manufacturing."

"Providing new coal power plants remains the path of least resistance under China's regulations. Alternative technologies have supply bottlenecks and lack trained labor. Even inefficient state-built coal-fired plants are difficult to replace with more efficient coal technologies because the newer replacements require larger sites."

FULL STORY: China’s Green Energy Gap

Wednesday, October 24, 2007 in The New York Times

Energy Environment China

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