Clean energy trade barriers 'unwise'

BEIJING - Top-level scientists attending a Nobel Laureates forum in Beijing have urged all countries to push forward development of clean energies, warning trade barriers on new energy development is an unwise move that would hinder the sector's development.

Over the past decade, the center of solar panel manufacturing has moved from developed nations to Asian countries such as China, Thailand, the Republic of Korea, and Malaysia, said Martin Green, a professor at the University of New South Wales who specializes in solar photovoltaic.

Industrial transfer and interaction have boosted the spread of solar technologies worldwide, said Martin, who was 2002 winner of the Right Livelihood Award, also known as the "Alternative Nobel Prize."

China has been actively developing clean energies to meet increasing power demand in recent years. However, this green drive has been challenged by increasing anti-dumping probes by Europe and the United States.

The Chinese government considers global cooperation imperative to develop new energies, insisting that its solar panel disputes with other nations should be settled through negotiation.

A recent solar panel row between China and the European Union ended up with a bilateral agreement in early August endorsing a price undertaking deal submitted by a bloc of Chinese solar panel exporters. The EU also endorsed a quota for Chinese exports to the EU.

Martin said that it is unwise for developed nations to set trade barriers on China's photovoltaic products.

He is worried that trade barriers could grow, noting India may target against Chinese photovoltaic products with tariff-based penalties.

Mohamed H. A. Hassan, co-chair of IAP, a global network of science academies, said that African, Latin American and Asian markets have great demand for China's renewable energy products because of their quality and competitive prices. He said that China's new energy products should not become a target for trade penalties.

Martin said that punitive duties on Chinese new energy products by developed nations will prove unhelpful for the development of their new energy industries in the long run.

The three-day Nobel Laureates Beijing Forum concluded on Thursday.