Workers lay down asphalt on the G213 road in the Qilian Mountains region on Wednesday. A project under the Belt and Road Initiative, the 62.77-kilometer road connecting Gansu and Qinghai provinces in Northwest China is expected to shorten the driving time between the two regions from seven to two and half hours in 2021. Photo: Shi Jiamin/People’s Daily

Participants in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative are considering proposing a green energy development initiative at a forum for energy ministers of BRI countries next year, as the development of green energy has gained traction worldwide in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The pandemic has wreaked havoc in the global energy market, causing energy prices to fluctuate wildly and reducing global energy sector investment. 

China is also moving toward a high-quality and more sustainable energy development model, and is trying to increase the proportion of renewable energy in its energy mix. The country announced an ambitious plan to achieve carbon neutrality before 2060 in September.

Globally, over 120 countries have rolled out targets for zero greenhouse gas emissions or agendas to realize carbon neutrality. 

So far, countries that have already proposed carbon neutrality goals account for about half of global carbon emissions.

A green energy cooperation initiative is expected to be rolled out at the Belt and Road Energy Ministerial Conference scheduled for 2021, featuring priority development goals and practical cooperation roadmaps to garner momentum to make green energy a major driving force in the global economic recovery in the wake of the pandemic, said an official with the National Energy Administration at the 2nd Belt and Road Energy Partnership Forum on Thursday.

Renewable energy projects tend to be more resilient against the impact of the coronavirus on energy investment, said Chen Guanfu, executive vice president of PowerChina at the forum.

China’s renewable energy investment in countries and regions along the BRI has steadied at above $2 billion each year and is gradually rising, according to a report released on Thursday.

The Belt and Road Energy Partnership, comprising 30 countries, was set up at the second Belt and Road Forum in 2019.