{"id":35799,"date":"2018-09-03T16:46:00","date_gmt":"2018-09-03T16:46:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2020-05-14T18:47:58","modified_gmt":"2020-05-14T18:47:58","slug":"10799-are-china-s-energy-investments-in-africa-green-enough","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/energy\/10799-are-china-s-energy-investments-in-africa-green-enough\/","title":{"rendered":"Are China’s energy investments in Africa green enough?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the past year, Egypt signed contracts to build the world’s largest coal-fired power plant<\/a> and broke ground on the world’s largest solar farm<\/a> – both with the help of Chinese banks and contractors.<\/p>\n

These mega projects highlight a growing gap between China’s vision of South-South climate cooperation, which prioritises clean energy projects, and its actual investments across the African continent, which still include coal and hydropower projects that pose serious environmental risks.<\/p>\n

Setting the energy and climate roadmap<\/strong><\/p>\n

Leaders from 53 African nations are gathered in Beijing from September 3-4 for the triennial Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC). Established in 2000, FOCAC is an arena for China and Africa to deepen their political and economic ties, which are increasingly important given that China has become Africa’s third largest investor<\/a>.<\/p>\n

At past summits, Chinese presidents committed major loans<\/a> to African nations – US$5 billion in 2006, US$10 billion in 2009, US$20 billion in 2012, tripling to US$60 billion in more broadly defined “investment” in 2015.<\/p>\n