Oxford Energy - China and Geopolitics, Aug 23

This report delves into China's role in the geopolitics of energy, with a focus on the challenges and opportunities presented by China's dominance in the energy sector. The report highlights the importance of collective action in promoting clean energy transition in Southeast Asia, and identifies areas where major countries like Australia, China, and the United States can work together. It also emphasizes the challenges faced by clean energy projects in Southeast Asian countries, such as complex permitting processes and lack of credible off-takers. The report suggests that program- and project-level activities centered on de-risking clean energy investment could be a possible starting point for collaboration between major powers. The report also discusses the implications of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism on China's supply chain and the importance of balancing the financing of net-zero transition with a fragmenting world. It highlights the need for cooperation between major powers to drive the energy transition and send a positive message to the world. The report cautions against zero-sum competition and encourages countries to seize their respective economic opportunities and industrial strengths in the ongoing energy transition. It concludes by emphasizing the importance of avoiding distrust and fear, which could cloud one's judgment and fuel the echo of questions about which country will win the competition in the energy transition arena. Instead, the report suggests that a more meaningful question is whether the two countries can seize their respective economic opportunities and industrial strengths in the ongoing energy transition, which would be much more consequential to the welfare of each population as well as global decarbonization efforts.