Oxford Energy Podcast – China and the geopolitics of the energy transition

China is widely expected to be one of the biggest winners of the energy transition: not only has the country got a head start in the manufacture and deployment of renewables and batteries, it is also central to the supply chains of critical minerals. Moreover, China is expected to maintain a dominant role in the ‘old’ geopolitics of fossil fuels as it is likely to remain a large consumer of oil and gas for some time. China’s state-led model, with generous financing and policy support, has helped it achieve this role. But at the same time, international concerns about the influence of the state in Chinese companies and their overseas investments could begin to hinder China’s clean tech exports. How will this impact the global energy transition? How will China’s ambition to reach carbon neutrality by 2060 change the domestic landscape for innovation, as well as China’s international climate stance? How will China’s relations with the US and the EU evolve under an accelerated energy transition alongside heightened competition for technological dominance? In this extended podcast, David Ledesma talks to Barbara Finamore and Michal Meidan about these questions, delving deeper into their contributions to the latest Oxford Energy Forum.

By: OIES