China Direct

Quezon City transitions to clean construction

 

CBI Member Buro Happold and C40 Cities have launched the fourth report in a series of Clean Construction deep dives. These reports support cities in resourcing efficient, net zero construction to deliver healthy, resilient and thriving urban communities.

 

The engineering, architecture and construction industry has a huge role to play in bringing about positive social, economic and environmental change. Almost 40% of global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions are attributable to buildings and construction.

The built environment is therefore critical to addressing the climate and biodiversity emergency. We must unite as a sector to drive change. Failure to reduce the impact of construction in our cities poses a serious risk to the environment.

Clean Construction in our cities

 

As a result, C40 Cities launched its global Clean Construction Programme in 2019. The programme supports cities to mitigate the impact of construction, strengthen resilience to climate risks, and facilitate dialogue within the industry.

A series of deep dives into six cities around the world — developed in partnership with Buro Happold — take this one step further. The reports provide local, actionable advice to help city leaders make the case for Clean Construction. They also offer guidance for other cities around the world.  The deep dive for Quezon City, in the Philippines, is the fourth report in the series.

 

A green and equitable future for Quezon City

 

The Quezon City Government (QCG) has set ambitious climate action goals and is part of multiple national and international working groups focused on delivering bold climate action.

The QCG has developed a number of locally specific plans and commitments, such as the Enhanced Local Climate Change Action Plan 2021-2050, which sets out a strategic framework and roadmap to build climate resilience, pursue carbon neutrality, and advance green economic development through inclusive and equitable climate action.

 

“With strong expertise in the retrofit of buildings and an effective (albeit informal) construction waste recycling system, Quezon City is primed for a Clean Construction transition. Having an extensive ability to use a range of hard and soft powers, the Quezon City Government is uniquely placed to lead such a transition.”

Fergus Anderson, Sustainability Associate at Buro Happold

 

Transitioning to Clean Construction

 

The construction sector is a major employer in Quezon City, across both the formal and informal sectors. Quezon City is grappling with a number of challenges linked to a growing population, climate resilience, informality and wealth inequality, a limited focus on preventative maintenance and an emerging skills gap in the construction sector.

However, the city is also home to a culture of reuse and retrofit, and has developed ambitious local building codes – albeit with limited uptake – that consider embodied carbon. Quezon City, and the Philippines more broadly, has significant experience in retrofit and refurbishment of buildings due to the country’s seismic risks.

In recent years, municipal buildings such as the high rise Quezon City Hall have been retrofit to strengthen the foundation and make them more resistant to seismic activity, the Department of Public Works and Highways has upgraded hundreds of structures across Metro Manila to reduce damage from climate-related events, and the Philippines Heritage Awards annually celebrates adaptive reuse; recognising projects that utilise buildings and other built-structures for purposes other than what they were intended originally.

 

Download the detailed policy infographic

 

How can Clean Construction support Quezon City?

 

Implementing policies that reduce carbon emissions from both building and infrastructure construction can support many social and environmental co-benefits, not just locally but also on a global scale.

 

The localised benefits of Clean Construction include:

• Designing new buildings and streets to accommodate increased climate risks, as well as undertaking retrofit and refurbishment today, will ensure the safety of current and future inhabitants of Quezon City to flooding and overheating, and protect the valuation of assets following these events.
• Adaptive reuse can retain community identity and foster local pride, whilst minimising disruption to local communities.
• Green and biodiverse spaces have also been found to provide mental and physical health benefits, reduce local crime rates, and increase land and property values.
• New industries for low carbon construction materials and waste processing will create jobs locally, and support the stabilisation of the informal sector, providing workers with stable sources of income and low-income communities with safer homes. 

 

The global benefits of Clean Construction include:

• Encouraging sustainable production and consumption practices
• Increasing citizen awareness of environmental and health issues
• Mitigating greenhouse gases and emissions
• Driving economic innovation, dynamism and competitiveness
• Fostering inclusive, just and transparent governance

 

“Extending the lifespan of buildings and developing build-sustainable supply chains can improve the quality of housing and build healthier communities. Our recommendations to raise awareness and knowledge of clean construction techniques will help establish secure, safe and just working conditions.”

Fergus Anderson, Sustainability Associate at Buro Happold

 

 

A sustainable future for our cities

 

All these positive outcomes are inextricably linked. To address the need for greater social and environmental justice, cities have a critical role to play in spearheading the vision and leadership needed to facilitate this transition.

The proposed Clean Construction policies for Quezon City will be applicable, to varying degrees, to all cities around the world.

Buro Happold and C40 are working with five other cities around the world to make the case for Clean Construction. This work forms part of the C40 Clean Construction Declaration. These cities have committed to reducing the embodied emissions associated with the construction of buildings and infrastructure by 50% by 2030.

More information about Clean Construction can be found on the C40 Knowledge Hub.

To download the Report please click here.

Our thanks to Buro Happold for kindly sharing these invaluable insights.

 

China Dialogue - Environmental News Digest 18-24 June 2021

Dear CBI members and Partners,

Please review the latest environmental news digest from China Dialogue below.

Download News digest China Dialogue 18-24 June 2021

For more reports, interviews and insights into a country shaping the world please review China Dialogue directly here.

With grateful thanks to the team at China Dialogue for so very kindly sharing.

ASEAN-UK Race to Zero Dialogues 24-25 May

ASEAN-UK Race to Zero Dialogues

2021 is a decisive year for climate action – and businesses play a critical role in reducing emissions and building our resilience to climate change. The ASEAN-UK Race to Zero Dialogues will bring together UK and ASEAN businesses in advance of COP26 to discuss the need for private sector climate action – and the business case for net zero emissions by 2050.

Join the ASEAN-UK Race to Zero Dialogues 24-25 May to:

• Understand why setting targets to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 is imperative, and the pivotal role that businesses have to play in a net-zero, low carbon future.
• Learn more about the Race to Zero, and how your company can join and contribute to combatting climate change, and the opportunities committing to net-zero emissions offer in terms of corporate image, competitive advantage and innovation.
• Hear stories of climate action progress from ASEAN and UK companies which have joined the Race to Zero.
• Discover more ways for your company to support COP26, through initiatives like RE100, EV100, the Powering Past Coal Alliance, and the Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures.

To read more and register for a series of Race to Zero dialogues over 24-25 May please click here.

 

 

UK-ASEAN renewable energy business opportunities

Dear CBI Members and Partners,

Please find details of the renewable energy market for 6 ASEAN countries below and links to a webinar below.

Our thanks to the DIT team in Ho Chi Minh for sharing this Report and links:

Download Brochure UK-ASEAN Renewable Energy Business Opportunities

On behalf of DIT's Non-ODA team across the region, I would like to update you about a Prosperity Fund Non-ODA initiative.

We have commissioned a report detailing the renewable energy market of 6 ASEAN countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. We would like to launch this through an ASEAN webinar event as detailed below. This webinar will be followed by a series of 6 country webinar. There will be two versions of the mentioned report, the public version which will be available widely and full version which is reserved for UK businesses. The resources spend for this report is intended to benefit UK businesses as a secondary benefit of the Southeast Asia Low Carbon Energy Program.

Please Register Here if you are interested in joining us. We also would be grateful if you could help promote the reports and the webinar event to your UK businesses network, either by using this e-invite or by re-sharing this LinkedIn post from DIT LinkedIn page.

Thank you for your support and please reach me in case of question you may have.

Best regards,

Dung Ngoc Trinh <[email protected]>

BP signs MoU to help China go green

CBI member, BP, has announced that it has signed an MoU with one of China’s leading solar project developers, JinkoPower Technology (JinkoPower), to provide integrated decarbonised energy solutions and services to customers in China.

The partnership aims to see BP and JinkoPower develop an innovative, integrated energy solution business, delivering renewable power and “Energy-as-a-Service” digital tools for commercial and Industrial customers in China. 

China is the largest and fastest growing renewable energy market in the world, and the country aims to reach 50% of power generation from non-fossil fuels by 2030. JinkoPower is one of the largest private solar project developers in China, and Jinko Solar has been the leading global solar module supplier for four consecutive years.

According to BP’s press statement, this MoU will bring together the skills and experience of both partners in solar development, distributed energy resources (DER) and digital technology, to deliver energy solutions to help decarbonise and optimise customers’ operations.

The MoU was signed in Shanghai last month by Simon Yang, BP China president and BP senior vice president, regions, cities & solutions for China and Xiande Li, chairman of JinkoPower and Jinko Solar. It was witnessed by Dev Sanyal, BP executive vice president, gas & low carbon energy, and other attending leaders of both sides.

Dev Sanyal said: “BP is committed to reimagining energy for people and the planet, and to supporting the energy transition to a low carbon future. Our partnership with JinkoPower aims to leverage BP’s leading experience in energy management and digital platforms, with JinkoPower’s world-class solar capabilities, to provide customers with integrated, low carbon Energy-as-a-Service offers.”

Simon Yang, BP China president and BP senior vice president, regions, cities & solutions for China, commented: “China is the world’s largest and most advanced solar market and one of the most important markets for bp to achieve its low carbon ambitions. We look forward to working with JinkoPower on renewable energy solutions to further contribute to the country’s energy transition, environmental protection and ecological progress.”

The partnership supports BP’s ambition to become a net zero carbon company by 2050 or sooner and to help the world get to net zero.

To read the press release in full, please follow the link.

Shell in UK-China battery investment deal

 

CBI member, Shell has announced that it has agreed a multi-year, power offtake deal with two Chinese state-owned enterprises invested in two 50MW batteries located in the town of Minety in Wiltshire. Shell plans to use the batteries to provide back-up power to the national grid.

The energy facility in Minety comprises of two 50MW batteries and is being developed by CNIC – China’s sovereign wealth fund – and state utility firm, China Huaneng Group. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2020. The Minety project will be built using more than 80% China-made equipment, China Huaneng said, when it announced the start of construction on the project at the end of December.

David Wells, Shell Energy Europe, vice president, said: “"Projects like this will be vital for balancing the UK's electricity demand and supply as wind and solar power play bigger roles in powering our lives. […] Batteries are uniquely suited to optimising power supplies as the UK moves towards a net-zero carbon system."

Power from the project, designed to balance intermittent wind and solar output on the UK grid, will be traded by Shell’s specialist Limejump subsidiary, which is claimed to manage the largest network of batteries in the UK. The deal marks the latest inroad into the power sector by Shell, whose interests in renewables and clean energy now include major solar developments, offshore wind project stakes, the floating wind pioneer Eolfi and Tesla’s rival in the battery storage space, Sonnen.

To read the press release in full, please follow the link.

Nottingham Ningbo University & Shanghai Institute designing new generation batteries

 

Salt is key ingredient for cheaper and more efficient batteries 

A new design of rechargeable battery, created using salt, could lead the way for greener energy. Researchers at CBI member the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC) have joined forces with a specialist group at the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics (SINAP), Chinese Academy of Sciences on designs for the novel energy store which allows for greater power while also lasting longer than conventional batteries.

                                      

Growing demand for electric vehicles and more sustainable forms of transport means finding new forms of energy storage such as batteries, super-capacitators and fuel cells. Currently a major challenge facing the industry is the poor performance quality of rechargeable batteries which often lose energy and power too quickly over time.

 

The collaboration team is led by Professor Jiangiang Wang, an expert in molten salts chemistry at SINAP, and Professor George Chen, Li Dak Sum Chair Professor in Electrochemical Technologies at UNNC, and has worked to design a possible solution outlined in a paper published in the journal ChemSusChem.

 

The paper, A Rechargeable High-Temperature Molten Salt Iron-Oxygen Battery, outlines research carried out using a novel and affordable rechargeable iron-oxygen battery containing a bi-phase electrolyte of molten carbonate and solid oxide. The first author of the paper, Dr Cheng Peng pointed out that the new design merges the merits of a solid-oxide fuel cell and molten metal-air battery, offering significantly improved battery reaction kinetics and power capability without compromising the energy capacity.

 

Professor Chen said: “Currently, the major challenge to rechargeable metal–oxygen batteries resides in the sluggish kinetics of electrode reactions, resulting in low energy and power densities. Therefore, activation of the reactions of both the negative and positive electrodes is crucial for high-performance re-chargeable metal–oxygen batteries.”

 

The solution to this challenge as confirmed by the team’s work is innovative but simple and low cost. Professor Wang explained: “We looked at elevating the working temperature of the metal-oxygen battery using metals such as iron as a base as this can be activated at a high temperature and keeps the cost low. Solid oxide fuel cells use tin or bismuth as negative electrode materials, but one issue was metal oxides forming between the metal and solid electrolyte and impeding the ion conductivity.”

 

Dr Peng added: “One type of high temperature metal-oxygen battery is the so called molten air battery which can use base metals for fast multiple electron charge transfer in molten salts. The molten salts have the capability to dissolve metal oxides. Our proposal looked at a molten salt iron-oxygen battery with a bi-phase electrolyte of molten carbonate and solid oxide which merges the merits of both types of battery.

 

“The result was a low-cost and long service life rechargeable high-temperature molten salt iron-oxygen battery with both high energy storage capacity and fast charging and discharging power capability."

The team behind the new design anticipate that the new battery has a great potential application in the area of grid-scale and renewable energy storage. Professor Chen, who is also leading a molten salt electrolysis laboratory in Nottingham, said that the new research behind the battery design has multiple applications. For example, molten salts are the ideal storage fluid for solar heat at high temperatures. Therefore, the molten salt iron-oxygen battery is in principle capable of storage of both the solar heat and electricity, which is very much desirable for both domestic and industrial energy needs.      

EU Leaders Turn to China After Trump Visit Clouds U.S. Relations

China Direct would like to thank CBI member Bloomberg and Peter Martin [email protected] at their Beijing Bureau for sharing this note on EU-China relations.

'Even as Trump hammers away at Transatlantic solidarity, the EU and China can't hide their differences.

The EU-China Summit is opening today in Brussels and - unlike last year - will likely produce a nice-sounding joint statement and perhaps even some real solidarity on climate change. 

But, beneath the surface, European officials share many of the same frustrations with China's trade and investment regime as the Trump administration, even if they don't express themselves with equal bluster. 

The trajectory seems likely to be toward the kind of world that McMaster and Cohn described in their op-ed on Trumpian foreign policy this week: "an arena where nations, non-governmental actors and businesses engage and compete for advantage..."

Full article below:

Download EU Leaders Turn to China After Trump Visit

 

Celebrating CBI Member Success in China June 2016

 

 

Please find a summary of our members' successes for June for your reference.  

• British Airways
• British Film Institute
• Deloitte
• DLA Piper
• EY
• Gatwick Airport
• Harvey Nash
• Heathrow Airport
• HSBC
• Huawei
• Jaguar Land Rover
• Jones Lang LaSalle
• London Taxi Company
• Manchester Airports Group
• Mott MacDonald
• Pinsent Masons
• PwC
• Rolls-Royce
• Royal Mail Group
• Simmons & Simmons
• University of Birmingham
• University of Nottingham

Download CBI China, Celebrating CBI member success in China, June 2016

London Taxi Company announces Zhejiang Geely raises US$400 million in green bond issuance

 

CBI member London Taxi Company (LTC) announced that Zhejiang Geely Holding Group priced the first-ever green bond on the offshore market from a Chinese automobile company, raising US$400 million to support the development of zero-emission capable vehicles by its U.K. subsidiary, LTC, manufacturer of the iconic London Black Cab.

The senior unsecured bonds, issued through Zhejiang Geely’s wholly-owned subsidiary LTC GB Ltd., carry a fixed interest rate of 2.75% per annum with a tenor of five years, which is the lowest coupon ever amongst the USD bonds issued by Greater China’s auto companies.

The final order book of over US$2.3 billion represented an oversubscription ratio of close to six times. Zhejiang Geely will use the net proceeds from the green bond to finance or refinance the design, development, and production of zero-emission capable vehicles by LTC.

Zhejiang Geely is investing £300 million in LTC’s new research and production facility in Ansty in the West Midlands to develop the next-generation London taxi, the TX5. The new model was unveiled last October in London in the presence of President Xi Jinping during his state visit to the U.K.

The TX5 is a zero-emission capable vehicle and will be launched in the U.K. at the end of 2017 and in international markets in 2018. The vehicle will hence be compliant with new environmental requirements being introduced in London.

LTC is also working on several zero-emission model concepts, including light commercial vehicles as part of Zhejiang Geely’s plans to significantly raise production at LTC and position it as a leading manufacturer of green and environmentally friendly transportation.

Please read more here.