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The Political Economy for Low-carbon Energy Transition in China: Towards a New Policy Paradigm?

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  • Wei Shen
  • Lei Xie

Abstract

China has become the leading country to develop wind and solar energy industries. By presenting the institutional arrangement and interest constellations of China’s regulatory system of renewable energy sectors, this paper argues that the reasons for China’s swift expansion of wind and solar energy investment go beyond the notion of a state-led model. It also reveals that due to a series of internal power struggles and external shocks, the current regulatory system is undergoing significant restructuring. A new policy paradigm is emerging that is largely different from the previous decades of policy orientation that centred on capacity expansion and instrumental interests for renewable energy development. The new paradigm would face tremendous challenges from existing institutions and vested interests, and it requires new set of ideologies that can help renewable energy sector to truly competing with the energy incumbents in order to bring about meaningful low-carbon energy transition in China.

Suggested Citation

  • Wei Shen & Lei Xie, 2018. "The Political Economy for Low-carbon Energy Transition in China: Towards a New Policy Paradigm?," New Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(4), pages 407-421, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:cnpexx:v:23:y:2018:i:4:p:407-421
    DOI: 10.1080/13563467.2017.1371122
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    Cited by:

    1. Tan, Hao & Thurbon, Elizabeth & Kim, Sung-Young & Mathews, John A., 2021. "Overcoming incumbent resistance to the clean energy shift: How local governments act as change agents in coal power station closures in China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    2. Grigorios L. Kyriakopoulos & Dalia Streimikiene & Tomas Baležentis, 2022. "Addressing Challenges of Low-Carbon Energy Transition," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(15), pages 1-7, August.
    3. Mohammad Al-Saidi, 2020. "From Economic to Extrinsic Values of Sustainable Energy: Prestige, Neo-Rentierism, and Geopolitics of the Energy Transition in the Arabian Peninsula," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-16, October.
    4. Maxwell Boykoff, 2024. "Climate change countermovements and adaptive strategies: insights from Heartland Institute annual conferences a decade apart," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 177(1), pages 1-17, January.
    5. Victor Kaiyuan Lin & Jenn‐Hwan Wang, 2023. "The Green Energy Transition and Peripheral City Development in China: Towards a Local Eco‐developmental State," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 54(3), pages 514-542, May.
    6. Lo, Alex Y. & Chen, Kang, 2020. "Business participation in the development of a Chinese emission trading scheme," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    7. Huang, Shi-Zheng, 2022. "The effect of natural resources and economic factors on energy transition: New evidence from China," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    8. Shen, Wei & Ayele, Seife & Worako, Tadesse Kuma, 2023. "The political economy of green industrial policy in Africa: Unpacking the coordination challenges in Ethiopia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    9. Zhu, Lei & Xu, Yuan & Pan, Yingjie, 2019. "Enabled comparative advantage strategy in China's solar PV development," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    10. Shen, Wei & He, Jijiang & Yao, Shangheng, 2021. "Green industrial policy in the post grid parity era: Governing integrated Solar+ projects in China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    11. Xiang Ruan & Rong Sheng & Tuo Lin, 2020. "Environmental Policy Integration in the Energy Sector of China: The Roles of the Institutional Context," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-14, December.
    12. Kejia Yang & Ralitsa Hiteva & Johan Schot, 2020. "Niche Acceleration driven by Expectation Dynamics among Niche and Regime Actors: China’s Wind and Solar Power Development," SPRU Working Paper Series 2020-03, SPRU - Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex Business School.

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