How important is China in the geopolitics of energy?

1. How important is China in the geopolitics of energy? By Alice Pearsons, Lauren Tawn and Chloe Livingstone

2. Chinas Thoughts of Geopolitics • China believes there should be no carbon caps to prevent growth of developing countries • Chinas approach: -There will be little or no acceptance of GHG emissions constraints that would unfairly limit LEDC growth- caps would slow down efforts to modernise and to improve living standards • Protective of domestic market, wants to allow industry to grow to the point where they are world leaders.

3. China’s input in Copenhagen December 2009 • Developed countries should shoulder responsibility to tackle climate change and should alter their unsustainable lifestyle -Sizeable reductions in GHGs by developed countries (40% by 2020) -Access to the latest clean technologies -Give up 1% of their gross domestic product in assistance to the developing world

4. The Control China has over World Supplies • China made a $7.8billion takeover of Addax Petroleum Corporation • Had interests in Africa and the Middle East including Iraq. Huge crude oil business. Now have large hold on oil business • Large say in worldwide oil and distribution • The international energy agency in Paris has projected that china’s oil demand will hit 10 million b/d by 2012. • China raised gasoline and diesel prices at the end of June 2009 for the third time since late March and to their highest levels ever, up about 9% for gasoline, and 10% for diesel. • China holds gas bearing territories in Bohai Bay, the South China Sea, the Pearl River estuary and the southern Yellow Sea. • China recently announced plans to build the world’s largest refinery to produce biodiesel.

5. The Control China has over World Supplies- Continued • Coal bed methane is viewed as a clean energy source, and china has the world’s third largest reserves. • China has signed about 10 contracts in the oil and gas sectors of Iran. • In Iraq, China has reached an agreement to develop the al-Ahdab oil field at a cost of $3 billion- gives China rights over a huge oil amount of oil • China has some very close links with Russia and the Middle East because of its oil imports. During trading it offered loans to the countries in return for them to supply China, committing Russia to provide 300,000 barrels per day over a period of 20 years, in return for a loan of $25billion. If a global energy crisis were to occur, this could potentially be disastrous for western world • China is the second largest importer of oil and will most definitely overtake the US by 2030. With China’s huge population along with its high rates of economic growth and increasing demand for power generation, China will be looking for all the energy resources it can obtain. can lead to conflict

6. Pollution • The amount of fuel that China is using has colossal global effects. In 2007, China was placed as the leading emitter of carbon dioxide. • China’s oil consumption has increased dramatically (raising by 900,000 barrels per day to 6.43million barrels per day in 2004), most of this being imported from Russia. This will mean that oil reserves will be depleting more rapidly, and the rest of the world will not have as much fossil fuels to use. • The amount of oil bought by China was used as an indicator of the recession. During the period of the recession, China’s oil sales dropped slightly (oil demand growth dropped to 400,000 barrels per day in 2008), but towards the end of 2009 they began to pick up again, indicating that the recession was beginning to come to an end and countries were feeling more confident in buying more fuel and developing countries further. • Home to 16 of the 30 cities with the worst air pollution in the world due to industry

7. In short the answer to our question is that China is extremely important in the geopolitics of energy!