China: Research, Innovation and Development projects well underway

Since early 2013, 12 Sino-Danish projects have focussed on research, innovation and development within sustainability and green energy technology.

March 5, 2014

12 joint projects between Chinese and Danish parties have been initiated in 2013 as a part of the Sino-Danish co-operation. The projects focus on research, innovation and development of sustainable, green technologies to enhance the use of energy efficiency and renewable energy in Denmark and China. The project implementation agreements was signed in early 2013 and the projects cover a wide range of topics, from biomass, district heating and wind energy to smart grid and system integration of renewables.

One of the many interesting projects deals with production of ethanol from kenaf cellulose. Kenaf is a fast growing, fiber-rich plant. The Danish company Novozymes A/S cooperates with 3 Chinese companies; Dahua Engineering Management (Group) Co., Shanghai Zhongwei Biochemistry Co. and Harbin China Distiller Co. The project involves the construction of a 1200 ton/year demonstration plant in Harbin, Heilongjiang province.

The selection process
As part of the Renewable Energy Development (RED) Programme’s so-called component 2, 30 million DKK was allocated to support energy technology development and demonstration projects.

After two rounds of calls for proposals in 2012, the 12 projects were selected after careful evaluation of a vast amount of proposals. The primary role in the evaluation committee, in which the Danish Energy Agency (DEA) took part, was to find the balance between the vari-ous technologies and ensuring that selected proposals were mutually beneficial for Denmark and China, thereby maximising the benefits and consequent output from the projects.

In the coming newsletters, we will go into more detail with the individual projects. Stay tuned.

For more information please visit this webpage or find the fact sheet for the projects compiled by the Danish Energy Agency on this page

Fact sheet: the 12 C2 projects

Erik KjærAC-medarbejderCenter for Global Rådgivning og ForhandlingTlf.: 41 18 84 29ekj@ens.dk