The Energy Politics of China

Abstract

A central feature of China’s energy politics is the coexistence of ambitious renewable energy policies and continued investments in fossil fuels. Building on key literature in Chinese politics, this chapter uses the politics of China’s clean energy transition as a central empirical case to show that contradictions inherent in China’s energy sector governance result from institutional fragmentation. Institutions for energy sector governance have created divergent incentives for central and local governments as well as various administrative agencies charged with energy policymaking, which explains the simultaneous pursuit of conflicting policy goals.