Strait of Hormuz shipping disruption pushes Japan’s Q2 electricity prices up 30% year-on-year

On August 3, Wang Jianbo, Deputy Administrator of China’s National Energy Administration (NEA), met with Dr. Kgosientsho Ramokgopa, South Africa’s Minister of Electricity and Energy, in Beijing. The two sides exchanged views on advancing energy cooperation between China and South Africa. Wang Jianbo stated that energy is a key area of bilateral cooperation, and China is willing to work with South Africa to make good use of existing intergovernmental cooperation mechanisms, as well as platforms such as the Belt and Road Initiative and BRICS, to strengthen cooperation and exchanges in energy planning, clean energy, power grids, and technological innovation, continuously elevating the level of China-South Africa energy cooperation. Ramokgopa noted that South Africa’s Integrated Resource Plan 2025 has been formally implemented, and new energy is a key focus of South Africa’s future development. South Africa appreciates China’s comprehensive new energy industrial system and is willing to further deepen cooperation with China in energy policy, energy planning, project investment, and technology exchange. Officials from the NEA’s Department of Science and Technology, Department of Electric Power, Department of New Energy, and Department of International Cooperation attended the meeting.

On August 6, Three Gorges Energy announced that, in order to promote large-scale new energy project development and deeply integrate into the national energy security strategy, the company plans to establish a joint venture with China Yangtze Power and Three Gorges Investment in Qinghai – Three Gorges Group Qinghai Energy Investment Co., Ltd. (subject to final business registration name). Three Gorges Energy, China Yangtze Power, and Three Gorges Investment will contribute RMB 340 million, RMB 330 million, and RMB 330 million respectively in cash, representing 34%, 33%, and 33% of the joint venture’s registered capital respectively.

According to CCTV News on August 5, three mandatory national standards for energy consumption and efficiency in the photovoltaic sector will be formally implemented from January next year. The three standards are designed to rigorously control the entry of low-efficiency products at source, promoting technological upgrading and green transformation of the PV industry. In terms of energy consumption control for manufacturers, the two mandatory national standards – Energy consumption limit per unit product of monocrystalline silicon and Energy consumption limit per unit product of polysilicon and germanium – focus on the core raw materials of PV modules, standardising the scope of energy consumption statistics and calculation methods. In terms of product energy efficiency improvement, the mandatory national standard Energy efficiency limits and energy efficiency grades for crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules and inverters establishes energy efficiency grades for PV modules and inverters used in ground-mounted power plants, commercial & industrial, and residential PV applications.