Energy Partnership supports energy efficient and sustainable development of industry parks in China

On 18 January 2022, the Energy Partnership successfully launched the Sino-German Demonstration Project on Energy Efficiency in Cities in Jintan Economic Development Zone (Jintan EDZ). The implementation partners, GIZ, CECEP Consulting and the German Energy Agency (dena), kicked-off the project by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the industry park’s administration committee. A further highlight of the event was a report launch on green finance in Europe and China and a panel discussion on the role of sustainable financing for the energy transition in industry parks and city quarters. Jintan EDZ, located in Jiangsu province, was chosen as pilot park for the implementation of the demonstration project at the end of 2021. The goal of the project: Supporting Jintan EDZ in developing an integrated energy-concept for the pilot area – based on German and international best-practices, strengthening energy efficiency in urban areas and industry parks, and promoting private sector cooperation between both countries.

Representatives from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and the National Development and Reform Commissions (NDRC) of China delivered opening remarks. The event attracted more than 100 participants onsite, including local government officials, think tanks, academia, banks and private sector representatives. Over 10,000 viewers followed the online stream. 

Towards an Efficient and Sustainable Urban Energy System

"The overall aim of the project is to contribute to municipal climate protection by developing and implementing an integrated energy concept for an industrial park and to identify existing – and economically interesting – energy saving and greenhouse gas emission reduction potentials. Furthermore, the project aims at improving the market conditions for energy efficiency technologies and services for the realization of sustainable local energy systems, strengthening the private sector cooperation between Germany and China, and involving German companies in the implementation of energy efficiency measures,” explained Mr. Xiong Zhe, Division Director of the Resource and Environmental Protection Department at NDRC, in his welcome remarks.

“Combatting climate change is a task that can not be solved by a single country alone. Hence, Germany and China sealed an outstanding energy partnership. We believe that learning from each other is the way forward for accelerating our path towards a low-carbon future. I believe that Jintan EDZ, with its extensive experience in Sino-German cooperation, will provide an excellent example for sustainable district energy planning, combining both German and Chinese approaches and experiences,” emphasized Ms. Christine Falken-Grosser, Division Director for Bilateral Energy Cooperation of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).

Green Finance crucial for low carbon energy transition in cities

Industry parks are responsible for around 30% of China’s energy consumption and 70% of the country’s environmental pollution. Innovative approaches for greening industry parks are crucial for achieving China’s 2060 carbon neutrality goal. Green Financing institutions and banks play an important role to enable the necessary transformative investments towards a low carbon transition of industry parks.

Therefore, for the second part of the launch event, the Energy Partnership organized a roundtable to discuss the role of green financing for the sustainable development of industry parks. Focusing on industrial parks and energy-intensive industries, the roundtable explored how different stakeholders can work together to leverage more capital to promote green development in urban areas, energy infrastructure and supply chains. Furthermore, GIZ released a report on the status of green financing in China and Europe, highlighting further potentials for bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the field.