Scientists want clean energies promoted

Top-level scientists attending a Nobel laureates forum in Beijing have urged all countries to push forward development of clean energies.

They said trade barriers on new energy development was an unwise move that would hinder the sector's development, reported Xinhua Thursday.

Over the past decade, the centre 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.

Industrial transfer and interaction have boosted the spread of solar technologies worldwide, said Martin.

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 the US and Europe.

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 has ended with a bilateral agreement in 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.

Stating that it was unwise for developed nations to set trade barriers on China's photovoltaic products, Martin said he was worried that India might target Chinese photovoltaic products with tariff-based penalties.

Mohamed H.A. Hassan of 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.

The three-day Nobel Laureates Beijing Forum concluded Thursday.

--Indo-Asian News Agency

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