Palmetto State News

The U.S. is driving toward more renewable energy including solar, but China is presenting obstacles that may hinder the nation's objectives.

China currently leads the world in solar panel production and is reportedly using forced labor from its Uyghur minority population to produce it. China is also ramping up coal production, which poses an issue with the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) Summit in Glasgow, Scotland.

According to The New York Times, President Joe Biden announced a $555 billion climate package ahead of the COP26 Summit, which concludes Nov. 12. The package contains provisions to steer the country toward using more electric vehicles and tax incentives to encourage utilities to move away from producing electricity using coal and natural gas.

To achieve its goal of relying more on renewable energy, the U.S. will likely need to rely on Chinese produced solar panels. Reuters reported that in 2019, China was the world’s largest producer of photovoltaic products and produces 80% of all solar panels globally.

However, the production of those solar panels allegedly relies on forced labor. In January, the U.S. Department of State published a report detailing the abuses the Chinese Communist Party has inflicted on the Uyghur population since at least 2017. The report detailed incidents of torture, involuntary sterilization, and forced labor.

Research from Sheffield Hallam University, a United Kingdom-based public research organization, shows that Uyghurs forced into labor in China produce 45% of the world’s solar-grade polysilicon, which 95% of solar modules rely on. The research identified 90 Chinese and international companies whose supply chains would be impacted by the realization that the products are created using forced labor.

An article published in Forbes by Kenneth Rapoza makes the case that China is set up to be the world’s “Green OPEC”. Eight of the top 10 solar manufacturers in the world are Chinese. 

David Zaikin, an energy industry consultant and founder of Key Elements Group in London, told Forbes that, “one of the biggest mistakes the West has done on green policies to cut CO2 emissions and trying to reduce dependence on oil and gas producing nations is that the transition to renewable energy puts the West at the mercy of China.” 

Another point of issue at the upcoming COP26 global energy summit is China's increasing coal production. 

According to CNN, China has been experiencing rolling blackouts that for the past few weeks and has ordered its coal mines to increase output.

While China ramps up its coal production, it already produces the most carbon dioxide of any nation in the world, nearly doubling the United States’ output of 5.41 gigatons as of 2018, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists.

A potential answer for more clean energy may be more nuclear power. 

The U.S. Energy Information Administration noted that in 2021 the leading source of energy generation in South Carolina is nuclear, which satisfies around 50% of the state's needs. As of 2019, solar energy provides less than 3% of the electricity used in the state.