Global energy interconnection “cost-effective” solution to climate change

Building global energy interconnection (GEI) is a cost-effective solution to climate change, according to a report released here Thursday by the Global Energy Interconnection Development and Cooperation Organization (GEIDCO).

“GEI provides a technically advanced, cost-effective, viable and scalable solution to global climate governance, playing a key role in advancing the implementation of the Paris Agreement and winning the race against climate change,” Liu Zhenya, chairman of the Beijing-based GEIDCO, said at a thematic event of the ongoing United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference (COP25).

“It is estimated that GEI can get a comprehensive benefit of 9 U.S. dollars for every 1 dollar invested between 2020 and 2050, which has a significant advantage,” said Liu.

According to the report, by 2050, cumulative investments in the energy system under the GEI 2-degrees Celsius and 1.5-degrees Celsius scenarios will be 78 trillion dollars and 92 trillion dollars respectively, lower than any other global scenarios, boosting economic development and reducing carbon emissions at the same time.

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Power grid interconnection can take advantage of differences in resources, seasons, time zones and power prices among countries and regions to significantly improve the investment efficiency of clean energy, the report said.

The report also suggested that the fundamental way to address climate change is to accelerate clean development and “de-carbonization” of the energy system.

Exploitation and utilization of fossil fuels are the root causes of climate change, it said, adding that from 1970 to 2018, fossil fuels caused 1.1 trillion tons of carbon dioxide emissions, accounting for over 70 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions.

At the thematic event, GEIDCO also signed an agreement with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the World Meteorological Organization on deepening cooperation of researches and projects and taking positive measures to support countries in delivering their nationally determined contributions.

Founded in March 2016, GEIDCO currently has 756 members from 106 countries across five continents.

Source: Xinhua – MADRID