Senior officials from Pacific visit China

By Alfred Sasako

in Guangzhou, China

 

A team of senior officials from the Pacific Island Countries are in Guangdong Province visiting a number of entities that hold out future prospects in the development of clean energy for Pacific countries.

Solomon Islands, although without diplomatic relations with China, is represented on the trip by the President of the Democratic Alliance Party (DAP), John Teddie Usuramo and his Deputy Oscar Vahimana.

Yesterday the 15-member delegation visited South China University of Science and Technology where a pilot project on clean energy has been on experiment since 2011.

The University is using solar for the solar energy experiment.

“Pacific Island nations are abundantly blessed with sunshine all year round. We hope the result from our work would one day be shared with your countries,” a spokesman for the Guangdong Yudean Group, which heads the project, told the visitors in briefings yesterday.

The Guangdong Yudean Group is a State-Owned company. Its activities in clean energy development are a joint venture with the South China University of Science and Technology – one of 10 universities in Guangdong Province.

An estimated 160,000 students, roughly the population of Honiara, attend these 10 universities at any one time of the year.

Already, the Guangdong Yudean Group is doing a clean energy project in Papua New Guinea and company officials are hoping that other Pacific Island nations would invite the group to cooperate in clean energy development.

The company spokesman said carbon dioxide emissions has fallen by some 320, 000 tons since the Guangdong Yudean Group began clean energy development.

The 15-member delegation represent the Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tonga,

They are due to visit Guangdong Department of Commerce today (Wednesday). Known as the South Gate of China, its capital, Guangzhou is located in the north Pearl River delta adjacent to Hong Kong.

Guangzhou’s GDP has ranked 3rd amongst China’s mainland cities for 26 consecutive years since 1989.

Last year its GDP reached 1.96 trillion RMB, up by 8.33 percent. It has sister relations with 59 cities in 43 countries.

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