Palmetto State News

South Carolina's adoption of voluntary renewable portfolio standards (RPS) to implement renewable energy as a source of electricity could result in contributing to the United States' growing reliance on China for metals and other resources needed to sustain the renewable energy industry, according to one report.

As reported previously by Globe Banner, the Institute for Energy Research stated that the United States' sudden withdrawal from Afghanistan may have given China direct access to the region that is estimated to be sitting on mineral reserves valued as high as $3 trillion. The Afghan region accounts for 30% of the global market for lithium, according to the International Energy Agency.

China's growing dominance over core metals, mineral reserves and renewable energy industry production could ultimately result in the United States' reliance on China. 

A state's RPS requires that a specified percentage of the electricity that utilities sell comes from renewable resources, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). South Carolina is one of three states that have adopted a voluntary RPS, which is set at 2% and does not have a cost cap like some other states. 

According to the NCSL, RPS “drive the nation’s $64 billion market for wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources.” A recent statement from the International Monetary Fund details how pushing for clean energy could significantly raise prices for core metals, such as copper, nickel, cobalt and lithium for years to come due to an extremely high increase in demand as climate policies are being adopted globally. 

“Prices could reach historical peaks for an unprecedented length of time and even delay the energy transition itself,” the IMF article stated, as reported by Globe Banner.

The IMF article specifically estimates that one metric ton of lithium, which currently costs around $6,000, could jump to $15,000 by the end of the decade and remain at those higher prices through most of the 2030’s, Globe Banner reported. 

The article further estimates that the metal boom could bring substantial economic gain to companies involved in exporting these key metals. According to Globe Banner, IMF also hinted at some global “mandates” surrounding these key metals to “play a key role in data dissemination and analysis, setting industry standards, and fostering global cooperation.”

“The chaos may offer China, which dominates the world market for rare earths widely used in technology, to step in to develop the mineral reserves, which also include lithium, used in the manufacture of batteries,” MarketWatch said, as reported in another Globe Banner article.

Globe Banner also noted an article published in Forbes by Kenneth Rapoza, which makes the case that China is set up to be the world’s “Green OPEC.” Although one company among the top 10 solar manufacturers is a U.S. company, eight of the nine remaining are Chinese. According to Rapoza, nearly 80% of solar panels installed in the United States come from China or Chinese companies.

As a result of the recent COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, the U.S. and China issued a joint pledge to decrease their emissions in the coming years. However, the deal lacks specificity, according to NPR.

While this agreement comes on the heels of China announcing greater investment in coal to keep its citizens' lights on, it is more important to note the control the Chinese have over the renewable energy industry. As of 2019, China was the world’s largest producer of photovoltaic products, responsible for creating 80% of all solar panels globally. The country has also been accused of genocide against the Uyghur population and those allowed to live are often forced to work, many on the creation of these products, Globe Banner reported. 

Sheffield Hallam University, a public research organization in the United Kingdom, published research linking the suppressed Uyghur population to the global solar panel supply. According to the report, Uyghurs forced into labor in China are responsible for 45% of the world’s solar-grade polysilicon, which 95% of solar modules rely on. 

According to the same research, every polysilicon producer in the Uyghur region has reported participation in the “labor transfer programs and/or are supplied by raw materials companies that have.” The labor transfers outlined in the report are involuntary and accomplished through “unprecedented coercion.” The research identified 90 Chinese and international companies whose supply chains are intertwined and, thus, would be affected by the realization that the Chinese products are created using forced labor.

  

“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,” said David Zaikin, an energy industry consultant and founder of Key Elements Group in London, in comments to Forbes, as reported by Globe Banner