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22. How Argentina Pushed Chinese Investors to Help Revitalize Its Energy Grid
- Author:
- Juliana González Jáuregui
- Publication Date:
- 12-2021
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- China’s modernization strategy integrates both domestic and foreign policy, especially through two complementary prongs—the so-called Going Global strategy and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This push to internationalize China’s development strategy has ushered in a new era in Beijing’s relationships with countries and regions around the world. In Latin America, these policies have triggered a dynamic pattern of interactions between China and the region’s political economy. Being rich in fuels, energy, foodstuffs, and basic products, countries in Latin America have emerged as significant suppliers for China, but they also have become important destinations for Chinese-made industrial products, and, subsequently, Chinese investment and lending. For Latin American countries, China’s rise as an influential investor, lender, trader, and builder has created an array of new challenges and opportunities. While Beijing has harnessed its engagement in Latin America to support its own development, countries in the region have sought to direct some of China’s economic and financial resources to promote their own strategic sectors. Argentina illustrates this dynamic well, particularly in the energy sector. Argentinian government officials and business leaders have attracted Chinese investment and finance into renewables and other types of energy to promote Buenos Aires’s goals of taking a hybrid path to an energy transition. For its part, China has seized this opportunity to advance its own development goals and to participate in Argentina’s energy transition strategy. Though Argentina has not yet formally joined the BRI, Argentinian officials have reported publicly that Buenos Aires has already decided to endorse the initiative and is waiting for the right moment to do so.1 Argentina has been weighing the pros and cons of signing on to the BRI. On the one hand, signing on could enhance the presence of Chinese actors in the Argentinian renewables sector, as China seeks to intertwine its engagement in Latin America with the deployment of the Green BRI, the dimensions of the initiative that are framed in terms of environmental sustainability. More broadly, joining the BRI could attract new Chinese investment and finance in alternative energy and electricity transmission infrastructure, further contributing to Argentina’s goals for an energy transition. On the other hand, Argentina faces the challenge of designing and implementing a long-term national energy plan that complements its role in the BRI. This means devising an energy plan that, among broader objectives, seeks to help Argentina harness Chinese know-how on renewables and develop innovation and technological capacities of its own. In the meantime, Argentina’s lack of committed engagement with the BRI to date has not impeded the expansion of Chinese overseas investment and financing for renewables and other types of energy projects in the country. In a clear sign of political agency, the diplomatic outreach of key Argentinian national and provincial government officials, as well as corporate players’ push for local associations, has been central in the quest to increase Chinese engagement in Argentina’s solar and wind power sectors and in other alternative energy projects. These interactions have allowed Argentinian policymakers to help shape an adaptive partnership to strengthen the alignment between Chinese investments and Argentinian development objectives. Admittedly, this engagement has at times encountered resistance due to environmental and social risks in certain localities. Even so, these concerns are part of the learning process and set a tone for future cooperation on energy projects. Renewables and alternative energy will continue to be a magnet for global investment as countries around the world strive to address climate change. Thus, local tensions are pushing both Argentinian and Chinese actors to learn from the problematic impacts of some projects and do more to address local communities’ concerns jointly. Successful responses to such concerns would further enhance the basis of Argentina and China’s energy-focused adaptative partnership.
- Topic:
- Infrastructure, Economy, Business, Investment, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, Argentina, and South America
23. Beijing’s Long Way to the Gulf Region Oil, Security, Geopolitics
- Author:
- Fuad Shahbazov
- Publication Date:
- 04-2021
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Baku Dialogues
- Institution:
- ADA University
- Abstract:
- Energy cooperation has been a key aspect of growing bilateral cooperation between China and the Arab states of the Gulf region for the past several years. Since 1996, China has become a net importer of crude oil and, as the second‑largest energy consumer in the world after the United States, is now the third‑largest importer of oil after the United States and Japan. Therefore, it should not come as a surprise that China is eying a deep and strategic partnership with the states of a region that sits on top of the world’s largest proven crude oil and natural gas reserves. The deepening political and economic cooperation between China and the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has received increasing attention from the region’s more established strategic players: foremost the United States, but also the UK as well as the EU and some of its member states. Indeed, the region’s apparent geopolitical challenges— such as the American withdrawal from the Middle East, the escalation of sectarian wars in the region, the outbreak and development of the Syrian conflict followed by the spread of Islamic radicalism and similar threats—have encouraged the Arab states in the Gulf (as well as Iran) to look more to the East for new reliable partners. This has provided China with an opportunity to obtain a foothold in the region, which sits adjacent to the Silk Road region and is therefore of significant and lasting interest to readers of Baku Dialogues. With the rapid growth of its economy and consequent heightened energy demands, China is viewed as a potential investor by the oil rich GCC states, each of which needs to diversify its economy. Ongoing Western sanctions directed against Iran also make China an attractive proposition for Tehran. Although the Chinese interest in, and policy towards, the region is increasingly complex, this new axis between the Gulf region (especially the Arab half) and China has not received much attention from the think tank and academic communities—at least in the West.
- Topic:
- Security, International Cooperation, International Trade and Finance, Oil, Natural Resources, Hegemony, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, and Gulf Nations
24. North Korea’s Energy Crisis: What Are the Problems?
- Author:
- Kyung-sool Kim
- Publication Date:
- 10-2021
- Content Type:
- Commentary and Analysis
- Institution:
- East Asia Institute (EAI)
- Abstract:
- North Korean businesses run by state-supplied energy have not been properly operated due to a sharp decrease in energy supply. Long-standing energy shortages have paralyzed the state energy supply and demand system, causing further disruptions in statewide functions. In this commentary, Kyung-sool Kim, Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the Korea Energy Economics Institute, states that this resulted from a complex accumulation of various problems: the characteristics of the regime, national capacity, state monopoly of production factors, the lack of a market, limitations of policy functions, the absence of capital and technology, and international isolation. The author argues that radical changes such as systemic reform and market opening are necessary to resolve these issues. The author adds that North Korea should be free from international isolation and propagate change in order to utilize external support.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Energy Crisis, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- China, Asia, and North Korea
25. Strengthening Regional Energy Governance in the Mekong Subregion
- Author:
- Chen-Sheng Hong
- Publication Date:
- 07-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Pacific Forum
- Abstract:
- This paper explores the energy trilemma problems in the Mekong subregion and explains the necessity for regional energy governance. The current governmental cooperative mechanisms are an ineffective approach to regional energy governance in the Mekong subregion and should thus be strengthened. Countries of the Mekong subregion are facing the following energy trilemma: energy security, energy poverty, and environmental sustainability problems. This paper argues that regional energy governance is needed in the Mekong subregion because the energy trilemma has transboundary externalities on the Mekong ecosystem and requires regional cooperation to be managed effectively. Effective regional energy governance is based on three components: coordination,general norms, and consideration of the regional context. The existing mechanisms for governance in the subregion are lacking these elements. This paper concludes with three policy recommendations. First, it is necessary to enhance coordination among the subregional mechanisms. By exploring mutual benefits to raise incentives for cooperation and by seeking third-party engagement, more effective coordination may be realized. Also, information sharing may be a way to enhance the mechanisms’ transparency and improve coordination. Strengthened information sharing will enable other subregional mechanisms to understand the scale of the mechanisms’ proposed investments and their impact on the whole subregion, as well as provide potential opportunities for cooperation. Second, it is essential to develop norms and standards for the optimal management of natural resources for energy-related activities. Developing norms and standards may keep nations from choosing norms that benefit themselves but not the whole subregion. Finally, considering the context of the region is important, especially whether the actors share a largely homogeneous ecosystem. If actors in a geographical space share a largely homogeneous ecosystem, considering the negative impacts of transboundary externalities, they will be more willing to make compromises and cooperate to manage the energy trilemma. This paper assesses the engagement of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and indicates that the lack of sharing a largely homogeneous ecosystem between mainland Southeast Asia and maritime Southeast Asia has weakened ASEAN engagement in solving the energy trilemma in the Mekong subregion. However, ASEAN should still increase its participation in the Mekong subregion’s energy sector. This would complement its efforts to push forward regional power integration plans such as the “ASEAN Power Grid,” “ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint,” and “ASEAN Master Plan 2025.”
- Topic:
- Security, Poverty, Governance, Sustainability, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia
26. Impact of US-China Trade Tensions, the Coronavirus, and the Plunge of Oil Prices on the Malaysian Maritime Transportation Industry
- Author:
- Ang Chin Hup
- Publication Date:
- 06-2020
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Maritime Institute of Malaysia
- Abstract:
- Malaysia’s maritime transportation industry has seen growth from the benefits of the nation’s strategic location, well-developed infrastructure, and buoyant economy. Recently, this growth has lost its momentum since it became affected by the US and China trade tensions, the Coronavirus pandemic, and the plunge in oil prices. The trade tensions affected Malaysia’s ports handling exports to China. The plunge of oil prices affects demand for bunker oil due to reduced shipping activities. Meanwhile, the Coronavirus pandemic has disrupted port operations. As solutions for these impacts, this paper recommends a diversified supply chain, logistics-centric port, a comprehensive bunkering strategy, and strict compliance to IMO’s conventions.
- Topic:
- International Trade and Finance, Oil, Pandemic, Industry, COVID-19, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- Malaysia and Asia
27. Strangers to strategic partners: Thirty years of Sino-Saudi relations
- Author:
- Jonathan Fulton
- Publication Date:
- 08-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Atlantic Council
- Abstract:
- This year marks the thirtieth anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Saudi Arabia. Over the past three decades, the bilateral relationship has transitioned from one of marginal importance for both countries to a comprehensive strategic partnership, largely on the back of a trade relationship founded on energy. This report begins with a brief historical overview of Sino-Saudi relations, describing how the two countries transitioned from mutual hostility to diplomatic relations, and then how political and economic cooperation strengthened the relationship to the point that they signed a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2016. It then discusses how the partnership has developed through the 1+2+3 cooperation pattern, especially through projects linking China’s Digital Silk Road with Saudi vision 2030, as well as nascent levels of security cooperation. It ends with an analysis of the bi- lateral relationship within the context of the US-Sino-Saudi triangle: How does it affect each state’s larger strategic interests, and can issues where their interests diverge put a ceiling on future Sino-Saudi ties?
- Topic:
- Diplomacy, Environment, Politics, Bilateral Relations, Economy, Business, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- China, Middle East, Asia, Saudi Arabia, and Gulf Nations
28. Enhancing US-Japan cooperation on clean energy technologies
- Author:
- Reed Blakemore and David W. Yellen
- Publication Date:
- 10-2020
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Atlantic Council
- Abstract:
- Japan’s October 2020 pledge to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 presents an opportunity to expand the robust US-Japan energy partnership into additional clean energy areas. But with a stark divide on energy policy in the United States, how can the US-Japan energy partnership appeal to disparate visions of the energy transition and be politically durable? In the wake of Japan’s net-zero announcement, the Global Energy Center is launching this new report, “Enhancing US-Japan cooperation on clean energy technologies,” which explores how the United States and Japan can increase the politically durable foundation for clean energy cooperation in their already robust energy partnership. Reed Blakemore and David W. Yellen analyze which technologies could form such a foundation, and they recommend that the two countries prioritize technologies that address three interrelated goals: enhancing energy security and resilience, becoming more competitive and spurring economic growth, and reducing remissions. The report suggests a path forward for the United States and Japan, not only to expand bilateral clean energy cooperation, but also to lay the groundwork for a broader Indo-Pacific partnership on clean energy markets and technologies.
- Topic:
- Security, Energy Policy, Environment, Bilateral Relations, Geopolitics, Renewable Energy, and Energy
- Political Geography:
- Canada, Asia, North America, and United States of America
29. Another Energy Competition in Northeast Asia Coal Policies of South Korea and Japan in Comparative Perspective
- Author:
- Eunjung Lim
- Publication Date:
- 04-2012
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Joint U.S.-Korea Academic Studies
- Institution:
- Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI)
- Abstract:
- Northeast Asian countries compete against one another in order to procure natural resources from abroad. Moreover, competition surrounding energy-related technologies is getting overheated in this region. It would be worth paying attention to energy competition between South Korea and Japan, so we can better understand energy security in Northeast Asia by comparing South Korea’s and Japan’s energy strategies. This paper examines how important coal is in the two countries’ economies and why coal has become so important . It also analyzes the similarities and differences of their coal policies, especially focusing on policy trends and prospects related to Clean Coal Technology. This paper will warn of another hot competition among the countries in this region and suggest multilateral cooperation.
- Topic:
- Natural Resources, Coal, Energy, and Competition
- Political Geography:
- Japan, Asia, and South Korea
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