U.S. -CHINA ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 002536 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR OES/WATSON, OES/EGC-DEROSA-JOYNT AND OES/PCI STATE FOR APP/GTHOMPSON STATE FOR EAP/CM - WARD STATE PASS TO CEQ CONNAUGHTON AND BANKS NSC FOR HUNTER, SHRIER, TONG USDOE FOR INTERNATIONAL/HARBERT, FREDRICKSEN, AND GEBERT USDOE FOR S-1 MWILLIAMSON AND JKUPFER USDOE FOR EERE PDICKERSON, JMIZROCH, AND MGINSBERG EPA FOR INTERNATIONAL/MCASKILL AND AYRIS USDOC FOR JNEUHOFF E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ENRG TRGY PREL PGOV SENV CH SUBJECT: U.S. -CHINA ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGY COOPERATION - MINISTRY OF CONTRUTION EAGER TO LEAD IN GREEN BUILDING TECHNOLOY REF. (A) Beijing 02535 (B) Beijing 00346 ¶1. (SBU) Summary. On the margins of the Third International Conference on Intelligent Green and Energy Efficient Building Technologies and Products Expo (Intelligent Building Technology Conference),Vice Minister of the Ministry of Construction (MOC) Qiu Baoxing shared his vision for expanding the use of green building technology throughout China with Mark Ginsberg, Member of the Board of Directors, DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (DOE EERE). Qiu plans to work with 30 key Chinese city Mayors to build a green building, akin to Beijing's Agenda 21 Building, in each of their cities and to demonstrate the versatility of green building technology through application to mixed developments and new building types. MOC is eager to partner with the DOE to conduct negotiations on the Energy Efficiency Green Buildings Annex (EERE Annex) to the "Protocol between the Department of Energy and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China for Cooperation in the Fields of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Technology (EERE Protocol)" and proposes three projects to implement the energy efficiency and green building technology cooperation. End Summary. Vice Minister Qiu Baoxing's Vision for Green Building Design in China -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Mark Ginsberg, DOE EERE joined Richard Fedrizzi, Chief Operating Officer and President of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for a meeting with Vice Minister Qiu Baoxing on the margins of the Intelligent Building Technology Conference on March 27, 2007. Fedrizzi introduced Ginsberg to the Vice Minister as the DOE official who recognized the value of funding Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and the USGBC. A former Mayor, Qiu understands the importance of working locally. Qiu plans to work with 30 key Mayors to build a green building, akin to Beijing's Agenda 21 Building (Ref. A),in each of their cities. His purpose is to demonstrate the feasibility of green building construction and promote green building technologies in key areas outside Beijing. Qiu, a Green Building Believer, Shares Plans for Sowing Green Building Technology in China -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) After attending a USGBC meeting three years ago, VM Qiu signed an agreement to pursue a GBC Chapter in China. Qiu hopes to see 70 local GB Councils to comprise the China Green Building Council and to establish a World GBC chapter in China. Vice Minister Qiu views GBCs as important for local governments and wants a GBC presence in China. The Ministry of Construction is the principal designer and sponsor of the Intelligent Building Technology Conference. ¶4. (SBU) Qiu plans to replace the outdated Mayor's Training Center in Beijing with a building that employs green building and energy efficient technologies. It is important to introduce the concept of green and energy efficient construction technologies by having a training facility that showcases the technologies, Qiu observed. Qiu indicated that, as the first LEED Gold certified building in China, the Agenda 21 Building has been a valuable model for green buildings in China. ¶5. (SBU) Qiu wants to expand the green building concept to 10 different types of buildings covering a range of uses and industries. The purpose of the plan is to demonstrate the applicability of green building design technology to industrial, residential, commercial, and mixed use developments in China. ¶6. (SBU) Ginsberg explained that one of his primary purposes in Beijing is to discuss the establishment of a Center of Excellence on the second floor of the Agenda 21 Building with MOST. Ginsberg hopes that MOC will also participate in the Center of Excellence, a project intended to showcase United States green building technology. BEIJING 00002536 002 OF 003 Ministry of Construction Eager to Partner with DOE -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Ginsberg also met with Han Aixing, Deputy Director General and Senior Engineer, Department of Science and Technology, MOC on March 29, 2007 (Ref. A) to discuss the process for negotiating the EE Annex and ideas for projects to be included. Ginsberg congratulated the Ministry on the excellent Intelligent Building Technology Conference just concluded, and praised Vice Minister Qiu's plan to build green building demonstration projects in various Chinese cities as a good step in gaining wide acceptance for green building technology in China. ¶8. (SBU) Han applauded the signing of the EERE Protocol with MOST (Ref. B),and noted the great influence that the Agenda 21 Building has had throughout China. Han recalled that he had been involved in the initial planning and early construction stages for the Agenda 21 Building, but that ultimate responsibility for its development had been given to MOST. MOST funds MOC's green building technology construction projects. ¶9. (SBU) Ginsberg outlined the proposal for the Annex, including the establishment of a Steering Committee for the Agenda 21 Building Center of Excellence, with the view that perhaps MOC could participate in the Center's development. By way of introducing the areas of cooperation for inclusion in the EE Annex, Han stated that MOC had built a building similar to the Agenda 21 Building, but had not fully realized the building's energy efficiency targets. Han hopes that, as a result of the cooperation with DOE, the time has come to begin discussing how to realize those targets. Potential Areas of Cooperation -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Han identified three areas of cooperation for DOE's consideration: a) Construct a mixed use (e.g., residential, commercial, entertainment, educational) high performance and environmentally sound building to demonstrate the versatility of energy efficiency building technology; b) Conduct a series of training courses on zero energy buildings targeted at local officials (Mayors) and design professionals; c) Construct a new Mayor's training center using energy efficiency technology thus providing the Mayors with personal experience with a green building. ¶11. (SBU) Ginsberg presented a draft of the EE Annex to serve as the basis for future discussions and exchanges. Noting that the Center of Excellence is one of the areas of cooperation already included in the EE Annex, Ginsberg indicated that the EE Annex will serve as the framework for future cooperation between DOE and MOC. DOE will consider the MOC's specific proposals and work to reach agreement on the type of assistance DOE will provide. Ginsberg requested clarification of whether the proposal for the Mayor's training center was one of the 10 green building demonstration projects that MOC is planning to build. Han said that he will clarify the proposal, and indicated that they are interested in technical assistance on a variety of building types. Han and Ginsberg agreed to negotiate the EE Annex by exchanging electronic versions of the text. DOE to Provide Technical Assistance and to Explore Additional Collaboration -------------- -------------- ¶12. (SBU) When Han suggested that DOE consider providing financial support for building construction, Ginsberg advised that DOE does not fund capital projects, even in the United States. Rather, DOE BEIJING 00002536 003 OF 003 provides technical assistance, such as evaluating the design program for soundness in reaching maximum energy efficiency. Han indicated that he would like to follow the cooperation model DOE had used with MOST. ¶13. (SBU) Ginsberg explored other collaborative efforts, such as inviting a group of city Mayor's to attend the Green Building Council conference in Chicago or a visit to the DOE National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Additionally DOE will explore how it can participate in 2008's Intelligent Building Technology Conference. Han noted that Great Britain is already actively involved in the Conference because it wants to be a major player in the reduction of greenhouse gases. ¶14. (SBU) Participants: Ministry of Construction, Peoples Republic of China: Han Aixing, Deputy Director General, Department of Science and Technology Peng Mengyue, Division of International Cooperation and Project Development, Center of Science and Technology of Construction, and Center of Energy Efficiency in Buildings Hwang Qin, Senior Engineer, Office of the Organizing Committee of the Intelligent Building Technology Conference United States: Mark Ginsberg, Member of the Board of Directors, DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Maria Holleran Rivera, Attach, DOE China Office, Embassy of the United States Shao Jun, Interpreter, DOE China Office RANDT