In return for receiving assistance, Hong Kong has a responsibility to return the favour. As the most economically advanced city in China, it should be a high environmental achiever. In exchange for receiving some of the natural gas the mainland desperately needs, under a new memorandum, Hong Kong should commit itself to an aggressive low-carbon programme to help meet national goals.
So far, the Tsang administration has only focused on the benefits we accrue - lower tariffs and cleaner air. Hong Kong should appreciate that, despite all Beijing's efforts to secure energy supplies, there will still be a shortage of cleaner fuels to power development.
Since the late 1990s, China has been building a network of natural-gas arteries. Today, there are around 24,000km of pipelines; by 2010, this figure should increase to 36,000km. From now, until 2020, we will see the rapid development of China's natural-gas industry.
Yet, the mainland will continue to have inadequate supplies. The shortfall will have to be met through imports via land pipelines from Central Asia, as well as liquefied natural gas imports from elsewhere.
Hong Kong needs to view Beijing's willingness to give us some of its natural gas in the context of the country's overall energy profile. Energy is a finite global commodity, and its supply and demand affect us all. Policymakers in Hong Kong need to do their best not just to secure supplies but also to conserve energy and use it efficiently.
For example, Hong Kong undoubtedly has the capacity to substantially improve the energy efficiency of buildings. It can also use demand-side tools to get the electricity companies to find innovative ways to work with customers, so that reducing consumption and improving efficiency are rewarded financially. The utilities should be allowed to earn more from energy savings, and customers can also benefit by paying less. Currently, the schemes of control have weak demand-side incentives.
The government had said it has an open-market energy policy and is paving the way for the possible opening up of the electricity market. And it will look into enhanced interconnection between the two power companies' grids. The administration sees this as a way to promote competition in the future, as well as possibly opening up the electricity market to others.