Climate Change as an Opportunity: Innovative Approaches to Energy Supply in China and Taiwan

chinnotopia at the China Lunch at CCST at TU Berlinn

On June 12, 2023, the chinnotopia team members Dr. Josie-Marie Perkuhn, Dr. Tania Becker, Dr. Nancy Wilms and Sven Pabis were invited to the CCST at the TU Berlin in the series China Lunch. The team presented an aspect of their own research from the project chinnotopia: Future desinged by China. The centerpiece of the event was a pre-recorded interview with Taiwan-based NIRAS staff member Raoul Kubitschek.  Following up on the article of the same name presented at the annual meeting of the German Association for China Studies in Winter 2022, Dr. Becker and Dr. Perkuhn began with their research findings on the research and development of innovative approaches to energy supply in China and Taiwan. They talked about the development status on power generation through renewable and alternative energy sources. First, Dr. Tania Becker gave an overview of the mainland situation. In 2020, China mainly relied on wind power. Most of the wind turbines are located in the desert because there is enough space and the conditions are good. China has also made some progress in the use of hydropower. For one, the Three Gorges Dam and the Baihetan Dam have harnessed the energy of water, as well as newly developed methods that harness the tides and salt in the sea. China is also the largest solar equipment manufacturer and continues to invest in research to improve solar cells.

Dr. Josie-Marie Perkuhn then reported on her research results from Taiwan. There is a lot of research going on in Taiwan; developers were among the first to seek patents on solar cells. The government recently published a 12-point plan to massively push wind and ocean energy development. However, currently only 2% of the country's own needs are generated with renewable energy. By 2050, the current DPP government aims to use 60-70% renewable energy and electric vehicles, and is relying on global cooperation and investment to achieve its vision.

For a better understanding of the technical challenges, Sven Pabis gave an insight into the transport of energy (smart grids) and Nancy Wilms reported on China's progress in energy storage. In China, energy storage has become more important, despite the high energy consumption in manufacturing and storage. Funding during the Corona period and the growth of electric mobility, including cabs and NIO cars, have driven the development of energy storage systems, especially in lithium batteries. New technologies such as current degree technology are contributing to ever further advances.

Flyer of the lecture