Peach Tree Times

China appears to be gaining an economic edge in the global push toward renewable energy as a result of recent metal price increases.

As previously reported by Globe Banner, the Institute for Energy Research noted that the U.S.'s rapid departure from Afghanistan may have granted China direct access to the region, which is believed to contain mineral deposits worth up to $3 trillion.

“The chaos may offer China, which dominates the world market for rare earths widely used in technology, to step in to develop the mineral reserves, which also include lithium, used in the manufacture of batteries,” MarketWatch stated in a report.

It is unclear how much that might affect Georgia, which is one of the states that hasn't established green energy goals. One thought is that as states move toward their renewable energy goals, they'll be relying more on China for the products needed to make that happen.

Source: IMF

The International Monetary Fund recently released a report outlining how the drive for sustainable energy may drastically increase prices for metals essential for renewable energy, including lithium; currently, the Afghan region accounts for 30% of the world lithium market.

According to IMF estimates, the price of a metric ton of lithium, which is now approximately $6,000, may increase to $15,000 by the end of the decade and stay there for the majority of the 2030's.

 

The Metal Price Scenarios graphic illustrates historical data leading up to predicted price rises in a net-zero emissions scenario that would take effect in 2040. “Prices could reach historical peaks for an unprecedented length of time and even delay the energy transition itself,” the IMF report states. And China likely will benefit from those higher prices.

With respect to solar power, China is also a major player — and it comes with a human rights cost. 

As of 2019, China was the world's largest producer of photovoltaic goods, accounting for nearly 80% of all solar panels manufactured worldwide; however, the government has been accused of genocide against the Uyghur community and of utilizing forced labor to produce these items, according to a separate Globe Banner report.

Sheffield Hallam University, a public research institution in the United Kingdom, recently published a report indicating that Uyghurs imprisoned in China produce 45% of the world's solar-grade polysilicon, which is used in 95% of solar modules.

 Additionally, the report revealed that every polysilicon manufacturer in the Uyghur Region has reported that they have participated in “labour transfer programs and/or are supplied by raw materials companies that have.”

The report also identified 90 Chinese and foreign companies with interconnected supply chains that would be impacted if it were discovered that Chinese goods are manufactured utilizing forced labor.

 “One of the biggest mistakes the West has done on green policies to cut CO2 emissions and trying to reduce dependence on oil and gas producing nations is that the transition to renewable energy puts the West at the mercy of China,” David Zaikin, an energy industry consultant and founder of Key Elements Group in London, told Forbes.

The U.S. and China recently signed a joint pledge to reduce their emissions in the future as a result of the United Nations COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland; however, NPR reports that the deal lacks specificity.

Additionally, several states in the U.S. have introduced renewable portfolio standards (RPS), which aim to increase the use of renewable energy as a source of power; Georgia does not have any RPS goals.

According to a National Conference of State Legislatures report, those standards “drive the nation’s $64 billion market for wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources.”