Since 1978, the economic reform implemented in China, China experienced the significantly economic growth and became the second largest economic in the world.
The huge consumption of energy resources and severe environment issues have arisen Chinese government’s notice, meanwhile, China is the largest developing country in the world and two thirds of its population lives in the rural area. Electricity shortage has become a critical barrier for remote and rural areas development. As a
consequence, renewable energy resources become the critical solution for electricity shortage in rural areas. Since the late 1970s, Chinese government gradually
implemented some polices to promote the renewable energy resources adoption in remote and rural areas (Peidong et al., 2009). The policies aim to support renewable energy resources by incentive subsidiary, especially for the form of biogas in most of rural areas of China. In mid-1990s, Chinese government has realized that China have huge potential natural advantage to develop renewable energy resources, such as wind
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power, solar power, hydro power and biogas. During this time, some renewable energy project and programs were established by the central government in order to contribute to the sustainable development in China. Furthermore, the government largely increased the support for renewable energy technology research by fiscal funding and project subsidiary. Governments also carry out measures, such like subsidiary and tax reduction to promote renewable energy adoption and stimulate renewable energy industry development. Moreover, with the concern of the rapidly growth of the environment issues, the government established laws, regulations and administrative regulations to stimulate renewable energy development, in addition, the support schemes objects also expand to wind energy, solar energy and biofuels.
In 1995, the National People’s Congress Standing Committee passed the Electricity Law of the People’s Republic of China. It was the first law specific on energy and electricity sector. In Article 5, Chapter 1 the General Rules, it emphasized that national government encourage and support to adopt renewable energy resources to generate electricity. Article 48 states that national government encourage and support local governments to utilize solar power, wind power, geothermal energy and biofuels for rural areas energy and electricity supply (Committee, 1995). The Energy
Conservation Law of People’s Republic of China was passed by National People’s Congress, Standing Committee in 1997 (amended in 2007). The energy conservation law also stated that national government encourage and support to develop and utilize renewable energy resources in Article 7. The energy conservation law also
emphasized in Article 59 that national government encourages and supports to utilize biogas, biofuels, wind energy and solar energy in remote and rural areas(Committee, 2007). Another legal document that refers to the promotion of renewable energy resources was Law of People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Atmospheric Pollution, which implemented in 2000. In Article 9, it stated that national government encourage and support scientific and technology research which benefit to control of the air pollution, in addition, the national government support and encourage to utilize solar energy, wind energy and hydro energy. In Article 25,
department under National State and local government should take proper measures to
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improve urban energy consumption structure, make effort to promote the production and adoption of renewable energy resources(Committee, 2000). These laws had stipulated that utilize renewable energy resources and promote renewable energy adoption were supported and encouraged by the national government. The State Departments also carried out series of regulations and documents, such as Ninth Five-Year Plan and 2010 Plan of Energy Conservation and New Energy Development, Ninth Five-Year Plan of Industrialization of New and Renewable Energy, Tenth
Five-Year Plan for New and Renewable Energy Commercialization Development and Rural Energy Development Plan to 2020 for Western Area of China. These rules and regulations mainly focus on the aspects of renewable energy future development plan, renewable energy industry develop, future renewable energy adoption goal and renewable energy’s role in energy saving and CO2 emission reduction(Peidong et al., 2009).
General speaking, prior 2005, China’s renewable energy progress was based on the policies which lack of systematic, stably and sustainability. No mater Electricity Law of PRC or Energy Conservation Law of PRC or Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Atmospheric, these laws only stipulated that
National government encourage and support to utilize renewable energy in general and seldom mentioned any effective detail measures to promote renewable energy adoption in China. Meanwhile, the incentives provided by the government are not tempting enough to attract state-owned enterprises or private enterprises to massive invest on renewable energy in China.
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