Interview: Hong Kong embraces niche in global green growth, says CLP Group chief

by Wang Xinyi

HONG KONG, April 23 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong is sure to carve out a niche for itself in the global green push by leveraging its strengths and role in the international market, said the chief of a Hong Kong-based leading power group.

A mature capital market and an open institutional environment combined have offered a platform for Hong Kong's exchanges with major international markets in the green economy, Betty Yuen, non-executive director of CLP Holdings Limited and chairwoman of CLP Power Hong Kong Limited, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Building upon that, Hong Kong needs to earnestly study the rules, standards and development paths of the international carbon market, and effectively promote the internationalization of green finance standards, Yuen said.

CLP Power, which has been serving Hong Kong for over 120 years and supplies highly reliable electricity to over 80 percent of Hong Kong's population, is leading a major green push in Hong Kong with a toolkit to cut carbon and boost efficiency.

Yuen believes opportunities abound in Hong Kong's green economy. "Hong Kong's business environment continues to improve, attracting an increasing number of quality capital and businesses," she said. And with that, Hong Kong has the potential to emerge as an international green finance center.

Hong Kong's green standards and certification are highly in line with the international ones and are trusted by international investors; meanwhile, Hong Kong owns more than 200 green technology companies and numerous talents in relevant fields, bringing together ample green capital and financial products, Yuen observed, adding that Hong Kong can be a global green solutions' provider.

Yuen shared with Xinhua her group's successful practice in green transformation, including setting up free electric vehicles charging stations for the public in Kowloon and New Territories, and collaborating with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) government to launch electric public transport, helping Hong Kong to move one step closer to its goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. In 2023, a subsidiary of CLP Holdings Limited inked a partnership with an international car rental company to launch Hong Kong's first one-stop electric vehicle rental and charging service.

"Although Hong Kong is in its infancy in terms of green transport, the development of green transport is already the trend, and such cooperation also shows the international market's optimism for Hong Kong," Yuen said. Her group plans to invest 52.9 billion Hong Kong dollars locally in the next five years to support Hong Kong with a reliable, world-class power network while cutting carbon and emissions.

Meanwhile, there is a broad platform to enjoy from the Chinese mainland, said Yuen, also chair of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. The Group entered the mainland market in 1979 and now has more than 50 power generation projects in 15 provinces and cities with a total investment of more than 50 billion Hong Kong dollars.

Located about 50 km from the city center of Hong Kong, the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station based in South China's Guangdong Province, was a joint venture developed, built and operated by China General Nuclear Power Group, formerly China Guangdong Nuclear Power Group, and CLP Group, and was China's first commercial-scale nuclear power station when it was initially commissioned in 1994. The power plant has contributed remarkably to the socioeconomic development in both the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong.

As a long-term development strategy for a zero-carbon future, the group is planning to invest another 30 billion Hong Kong dollars in the research and development of renewable energy projects in the Chinese mainland for the next five to 10 years, Yuen said.

She believes that green development is the basis for quality growth, and green transformation is possible through the development of cutting-edge technologies and policy support. These fruits can translate into opportunities for sustainable growth, green cooperation and more votes of confidence in the Chinese market, by forging a talent pool, drawing more investments and injecting greater vitality not only to Hong Kong but the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.