China’s State-Owned Enterprises as Climate Policy Actors: The Power and Steel Sectors

A significant share of the greenhouse gas emitting activities of China is operated by state owned enterprises (SOEs). This report, written by Fridtjof Nansen Institute for the Nordic Council of Ministers, discusses the role of SOEs on the electricity and steel sectors, for instance, in upgrading technologies, centralizing operations and developing alternative energy sources. Informal networks, guanxi and nomenklatura, and financial ties provide the state control over SOEs.

This makes SOEs a preferable alternative to private companies. As policies limiting emission growth have been economically attractive to SOEs so far, they have shown little opposition but this may change should costly measures be introduced in the future. While China’s position in climate negotiations is determined by the political leadership, the SOEs deserve attention due to their impact on China’s emission trends.