China, EU ‘can play great part’ in climate battle, bloc energy chief Kadri Simson says in call to join methane pledge
- It is in China and EU’s mutual interest to stabilise international energy markets, Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson says after annual talks
- Revealing agreement on closer cooperation, Simson urges China to join global pledges to cut methane emissions and triple renewable energy capacity
It was in China and the EU’s mutual interest to stabilise the international energy markets, European energy commissioner Kadri Simson told a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.
“We discussed the situation in the energy markets and how we can cooperate to [ensure] that the global gas and oil markets will be more stable and less volatile,” she said after co-hosting a high-level annual bilateral energy dialogue, the first in-person edition of the event since 2019.
“Both of us can play a great part by reducing global warming in the short or medium perspective,” she said, urging China to commit to global pledges to reduce methane emissions and triple renewable energy capacity by 2030.
“China so far has not committed despite the fact that they are global leaders in deploying renewables,” she added.
Simson’s visit to Beijing comes at a time of increasing tensions over trade ties, as Brussels steps up what it calls “de-risking” moves to cut dependence on China.