Advocacy Impact Story: Reliable Green Electricity Access

29/07/2025
News

The Government Affairs & Advocacy team of AHK Greater China helps to make the voice of German companies in China heard. Here is one story about how the team is doing this in practice.

Two wind turbines — Unsplash / AHK Greater China

The Challenge

Back in the years 2021/2022, we identified a critical challenge for German companies operating in China: accessing reliable, affordable, and internationally recognized green electricity. Companies striving to reduce their carbon footprints faced several obstacles:

Lack of international recognition of the Green Electricity Certificate (GEC) system in China
Limited access and supply of green electricity
High costs for and limited sources of green electricity
Unclear integration with carbon management
Limited long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) option

Our Actions

We have been actively advocating for the adoption and recognition of green electricity in China. This is our advocacy journey:

1) Our advocacy efforts began with dedicated Advocacy Papers, addressing the core challenges:

2) We actively fostered dialogue between German businesses and Chinese authorities through roundtables and strategic meetings. For example:

February 2023: Shanghai – Company Roundtable on Green Energy
March 2023: Beijing – Company Roundtable on Green Energy
September 2023: German Local Business Advisory Council on Green Power Procurement, hosted by the German Embassy, GCC and GIZ
March 2024: Green Energy Closed-Door Roundtable with the National Energy Administration (NEA)
September 2024: Green Transformation Symposium in Guangzhou
June 2025: Policy Briefing and Case Sharing on Green Energy Transformation

Breakthroughs

Persistence paid off. Our efforts led to tangible results, especially 2025 marks a significant breakthroughs:

In July 2023, the Chinese government extended GEC coverage to include distributed photovoltaic (PV) systems.
In 2024, China established a regulatory framework for long-term green power contracts.
In March 2025, the RE100 initiative recognized China’s Green Electricity Certificates (GECs) without conditions
In April 2025, new guidelines were released, connecting green electricity certificates with carbon emission accounting and energy consumption control

Result

Now, companies feedback that they feel relieved by the progress made, particularly by being able to align their headquarters' strategies through the purchase of Green Electricity Certificates (GECs) in China. However, our journey is far from over. We continue to foster dialogue with Chinese authorities, striving for the actual recognition and implementation of green electricity policies.

Learn more about the Government Affairs & Advocacy Team

Government Affairs & Advocacy

We officially represent the interests of the German economy and German companies in China. For this, we regularly meet with Chinese governments to discuss key priorities of Sino-German business relations and improve the business environment for German companies in China. We evaluate China’s economic policy developments and provide practical guidance and orientation for German companies in an ever more complex environment. Additionally, we support German companies with individual government affairs cases.

Positions

We continuously monitor and evaluate the evolving business environment and policy landscape impacting Sino-German business relations. Below, you will find our positions on a range of key issues. These positions reflect our commitment to supporting German companies in China and fostering stronger bilateral economic ties.

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Advocacy Papers

We advocate for the interests of the German economy and German business in China towards Chinese central and local governments. Our Advocacy Papers formulate our positions regarding key topics.