Across China: Global experts laud green development in east China

by Xinhua writer Zheng Keyi

HANGZHOU, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- For Rohey Njie, a tour around the new energy vehicle (NEV) showroom of Chinese automaker Geely was a fascinating experience. The Gambian biologist couldn't contain her excitement when she buckled her seatbelt and held her phone to record her test drive.

"I'm really impressed by the advancement of the green car technology," said Njie during a visit to the leading Chinese carmaker in east China's Zhejiang Province.

From Sunday to Wednesday, 19 experts and scholars from over 10 countries visited leading green enterprises in the coastal economic powerhouse province. Known for its booming green economy and innovation, Zhejiang is home to many of China's leading tech companies.

Zhang Hai, chief sustainability officer of Geely Holding, said he was pleased to see the surprises that China's NEV industry had brought to the visitors. The company aims to promote its electrification transformation and carbon reduction concepts globally, he added.

By 2023, Geely's lifecycle carbon emissions per vehicle had been reduced by 12 percent from the level in 2020.

Alfred Peter Taylor, a British space technology scholar, said he had learned about the province's green technology industry primarily through social media before, but was now seeing the relevant infrastructure in Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province, with his own eyes.

"Zhejiang is a very green province. I didn't expect everyone to be so enthusiastic about moving towards green energy and a green future," Taylor said.

The group also visited the Changdatu Photovoltaic Power Station in Xiangshan County in the city of Ningbo. As China's first large-scale coastal tidal flat photovoltaic project, it can supply about 350 million kWh of green electricity each year.

"Regarding the green development and the contribution to energy transition, these Chinese companies are doing very well," said Obid Tursunov, a visiting Uzbek scholar at China Agricultural University, adding that they are supporting the government's carbon neutrality target.

Tursunov also lauded CHINT Group's cooperation with his country when visiting the Chinese company, which has risen from a small switch manufacturer to a global energy solutions provider.

Altaf Deviyati, secretary general of the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia, visited Zhejiang for the first time. "Over the past few days, I've been more than impressed to see the scale and the speed of how China is going towards strengthening its green energy," she said.