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China energy security

China energy security
China must ensure an adequate supply of energy, including coal, gas and crude oil, to support its 1.4 billion people. According to the 14th five-year plan for 2021-25, China must supply more of its own energy needs by 2025, while advocating for larger domestic oil and gas production and clean energy cooperation with other countries, including the United States.
Tanker traffic has largely halted on the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman along Iran’s southern coast. The disruption is expected to hit global crude supply. Photo: Reuters
China-Middle East relations

Why the US-Israel war with Iran leaves Asian economies exposed

Mainland China imports vast amounts of oil from the Middle East but India, South Korea and others could fare worse, analysts say.

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Iran

Why the Iran war will accelerate China’s push to become an ‘energy powerhouse’

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Hong Kong

China faces oil squeeze after US-Israel strikes on Iran

Artificial intelligence

How China is using a massive ‘electron gap’ to pivot the AI race with US

Ex-finance official Zhu Guangyao says abundant energy supply gives the nation a critical edge in AI, as ‘electricity is computing power’.

As AI development triggers an explosion in global electricity demand, China’s vast energy buildout is seen as a strategic advantage. Photo: Shutterstock
New Energy

How China’s 5-year energy plan could change the way it powers its economy

Beijing will prioritise energy security through large-scale projects and greater regional self-reliance, as risks mount at home and overseas.

US-Iran tensions

What would blocking the Strait of Hormuz mean for global oil and LNG shipments?

Tehran temporarily and partially closed the strategic waterway during a military drill, prompting speculation over an extended blockade.

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Investing

Chinese power line projects seek private capital in sign of infrastructure shift

Beijing is encouraging more private investment in a range of critical infrastructure projects, from railways to nuclear power plants.

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Workers inspect a power transmission line in China’s central Anhui province. Photo: Xinhua
China’s carbon neutral goal

China to dismantle local power protectionism in push to electrify national grid

State Council directive eyes unified power market, curbing provincial fragmentation to boost green energy expansion and optimise resource flow.

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China’s carbon neutral goal

Green gambit sees China turn old oil pipeline into new carbon highway

Successful 27km trial unlocks vast carbon dioxide transport potential, bridging geographical gaps to accelerate a process seen as vital to large-scale decarbonisation.

Mainland China

Opinion | Why China keeps fossil fuels central even as it ramps up green energy

By preserving a diversified energy mix, Beijing is prioritising redundancy over an idealised, rapid transformation.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
Vietnam

Opinion | Vietnam’s renewed nuclear power push faces formidable hurdles

Money, corruption, a lack of skilled staff and other factors may derail Hanoi’s goal of building its first nuclear power plant by 2031.

A nuclear power plant operating at night. Russia’s state-owned energy company Rosatom has been contracted to build Vietnam’s first nuclear power plant. Photo: Shutterstock
China economy

China’s clean power energising economy, adding a Brazil’s worth of GDP: report

Clean energy industries drove more than one-third of China’s economic growth in 2025, as they continue to expand rapidly, study finds.

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Mainland China

China’s cheap oil flows under strain as US ramps up Iran, Venezuela pressure

US restrictions could lead China to turn to higher-priced barrels in other markets, while it continues to reduce its reliance on oil imports.

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China trade

China’s outbound investment surges to 7-year high amid data centre, energy boom

Chinese investment is increasingly focusing on energy and raw materials projects in low and middle-income regions, report finds.

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Construction workers walk to a data centre under construction in Malaysia. Chinese investment in data centres in Southeast Asia surged last year, according to a new report. Photo: AP
Science

Tibet’s exploitable green power could meet China’s energy needs: official survey

Extreme conditions, a fragile ecology and spatial constraints limit the expansion of renewable energy in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, study finds.

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Chinese researchers have reported that the technically exploitable capacity of hydropower in Tibet could reach 178 gigawatts, and more than 100GW for wind power. Photo: Getty Images
Renewable energy

Shanxi’s green leap: renewables surpass coal in China’s energy hub

Where Shanxi goes, China goes, in their broad energy overhaul, as the region with a quarter of the nation’s coal serves as the ultimate proving ground for Beijing’s ‘dual carbon’ strategy.

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Science

Chinese hydrogel coating boosts solar panel output by 13%, ideal for hot regions

Researchers say cooling innovation can lower temperature of overheated ‘hotspots’ on solar cells that can cause panel failure and fire risk.

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Energy

In Davos debut, Musk highlights key China advantage in AI race

China’s energy supply edge was also at the heart of a panel discussion on clean energy in Europe.

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. Photo: EPA
Tibet

China’s massive project to funnel clean energy from Tibet enters new phase

The ultra-high-voltage power lines will connect Tibet’s vast hydropower, solar and wind projects with factory hubs in southern China.

China trade

China’s zero-tariff gambit: why Beijing is slashing duties as Trump raises them

China’s average effective tariff rate estimated to be as low as 1.3 per cent in 2025, helping it secure raw materials and build soft power.

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China economy

China’s AI and EV boom drives record power demand, widening energy gap with US

The main drivers of the growth are the tertiary sector – covering services including AI cloud services – and residential use.

A drone photo taken on December 16, 2025 shows workers on a power transmission line in east China’s Anhui Province. Photo: Xinhua
US-China trade war

AI is reshaping US-China tech race – can electricity tilt the balance?

Already home to world’s largest power system, Beijing moves to lock in advantage through record investment.

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A drone photo taken on December 16, 2025, shows a power transmission line in east China’s Anhui province. Photo: Xinhua
China stock market

Chinese power stocks surge on State Grid’s record US$574 billion investment plan

Utility’s five-year plan to modernise grids and boost renewables lifts electricity equipment makers as AI demand drives energy growth.

China trade

China trade surplus hits US$1.2 trillion even with Trump tariffs

Chinese exporters brushed off the US trade war in 2025, partly by finding new markets, while lower oil prices and investments in renewable power kept imports flat amid economic growth.

Science

Chinese risk study finds space solar power stations could zap satellites

Beijing team finds that potential electrical discharges, though brief, could induce abnormal currents in spacecraft systems.

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Chinese researchers studying the risk of lasers in space say their findings will help guide safer parameters and the design of protective measures. Photo: Shutterstock Images
US-China relations

As I see it | The Chinese century may already be here

International competition will be won by nations with steady and realistic policies guided by a vision, not the ones indulging in cowboy militarism.

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Visitors enjoy the lush, futuristic interior of a shopping centre in Chongqing, on November 13, 2024. Photo: Getty Images
China consumption

Can China’s cheap, renewable energy help it outrun the US in the AI race?

China’s energy buildout means cheap, green and reliable electricity fuels its manufacturing and tech industries, giving it an edge over rivals.

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Diplomacy

China’s oil risks worsen as Trump threatens Iran

The US president’s suggestion of potential intervention in Iran after the fatal suppression of protests adds new jeopardy to China’s oil imports.

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