Showing 1 - 10 of 181
For China, Europe visit part of a wider confrontation
News, Peter Apps, Published on 14/05/2024
» In the Serbian village of Budjanovci outside Belgrade, people have talked for years about the Chinese teams that descended on the area following the shooting down of a US F-117 stealth fighter in March 1999, offering to buy pieces of wreckage taken by villagers as souvenirs.
Is China stockpiling resources in case of future war?
News, Published on 29/04/2024
» In the eastern Chinese port of Dongying, the start of 2024 has often seen several tankers docked simultaneously discharging Russian crude oil into a new 31.5-million-barrel storage facility completed late last year.
Why solar and wind are not winning
Oped, Bjorn Lomborg, Published on 20/04/2024
» Despite us constantly being told that solar and wind are now the cheapest forms of electricity, governments around the world needed to spend US$1.8 trillion (66.3 trillion baht) on the green transition last year. "Wind and solar are already significantly cheaper than coal and oil" is how US President Joe Biden conveniently justifies spending hundreds of billions of dollars on green subsidies. Indeed, arguing that wind and solar is cheapest is a meme employed by green lobbyists, activists and politicians around the world. Unfortunately, as the $1.8 trillion price-tag shows, the claim is wildly deceptive.
Green tech bans not implausible
News, David Fickling, Published on 19/03/2024
» In a world riven by great-power conflict, economic decoupling, high inflation, and worries that the interests of capital are being put ahead of workers, an obvious enemy can emerge: technology. The best way to preserve the status quo is to destroy the machinery that promises a change to existing ways.
A tale of nickel and copper
News, David Fickling, Published on 23/02/2024
» The world's biggest miner, BHP Group Ltd, grew powerful by building dominant positions in producing the minerals of the future. That makes the challenges it's facing with two key clean-tech ingredients a sobering lesson for the energy transition.
Are electric cars driving into a dead end?
Oped, Published on 02/02/2024
» In the early 1990s, every self-respecting American yuppie and retired suburban couple bought an electric bread maker, with sales hitting four million units. But the fad soon faded as these amateur bakers discovered that stuffing a precise quantity and ratio of flour, eggs, butter, yeast, and salt into a metal box takes time and costs much more than strolling to the corner bakery. Are plug-in electric vehicles (EVs) the breadmakers of our day?
Public needs accurate info
News, Editorial, Published on 22/01/2024
» Conflicting statements from government officials regarding potential lithium sources in Phang Nga province have underscored a troubling issue within state agencies, revealing a focus on public relations rather than facts and accuracy by the government spokesman team.
South Korea adapts to shifts in global trade
Oped, Published on 03/01/2024
» US-China relations are as fraught as ever, but what does that mean for smaller actors? The answer depends on the country, sector, and even firm. South Korean companies, for example, appear to be reaping significant benefits from US trade and technology restrictions on China, which have at least slowed the "China-zation" of manufacturing and global value chains. But this is not the whole story.
Boosting the clean energy push
Oped, Published on 05/12/2023
» The world stands at a critical juncture in the fight against climate change. Either we drastically accelerate the clean-energy transition, or our fast-dwindling chances of preventing global temperatures from surpassing 1.5° Celsius above pre-industrial levels will be destroyed. Few understand the stakes better than Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries.
How China can save the world -- as well as itself
Oped, Published on 11/11/2023
» China's model of economic growth has been a resounding success. With its focus on export promotion, capital investment, and technological catch-up, it has lifted some 800 million people out of poverty over the past 40 years.