Scaling Up Low-Carbon Technology Deployment: Lessons from China

The report analyzes China's transition from a low-carbon technology importer to a major manufacturer, focusing on supercritical/ultrasupercritical (SC/USC) coal-fired power, onshore wind energy, and blast furnace top gas recovery turbine (TRT) technology. It identifies key building blocks for success, including long-term government commitment, direct R&D funding, and the improvement of businesses' technological absorptive capacity. While China has bucked the trend of slow technology deployment in lower-middle-income countries, the report notes tensions regarding intellectual property rights (IPR) and the risks of prioritizing localization over global industry integration. It concludes that effective domestic policy and clear government signals are essential for the market to embrace low-carbon technologies.

• China has successfully transitioned from being a technology importer to a major manufacturer of low-carbon technologies within 20 years by establishing a comprehensive deployment and diffusion infrastructure.
• The Chinese government utilized several specific policy building blocks to scale technology, including holistic long-term localization plans, direct R&D funding (particularly for SC/USC coal power), and the use of national-level laws and regulations to create domestic markets and reduce costs, which specifically benefited onshore wind energy.
• China's approach to technology localization has created friction with foreign governments and OECD companies regarding intellectual property rights (IPR). While some multinationals do not view IPR as a major issue, others have experienced ambiguous ownership and contractual arrangements, leading many firms to withhold certain parts of their technology from transfer to China.
• Despite its success, China faces challenges including the deployment of low-quality technologies due to low entry barriers for domestic wind energy developers and a tendency to remain outside global integration processes by focusing on localizing components like bearings and electric controls.
• Foreign technology providers in China can utilize four primary business models: joint ventures (providing market access but risking IPR leaks), licensing (guaranteeing royalties but offering low profit shares of 3–6 percent), joint design (accessing capital but losing patent rights), and wholly foreign-owned investment (offering business model freedom but lacking government administrative or financial support).

APA

World Resources Institute (n.d.). Scaling Up Low-Carbon Technology Deployment: Lessons from China. https://www.wri.org/research/scaling-low-carbon-technology-deployment

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Scaling Up Low-Carbon Technology Deployment: Lessons from China. n.d. https://www.wri.org/research/scaling-low-carbon-technology-deployment.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Scaling Up Low-Carbon Technology Deployment: Lessons from China |url=https://www.wri.org/research/scaling-low-carbon-technology-deployment |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitutendscaling, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Scaling Up Low-Carbon Technology Deployment: Lessons from China}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/scaling-low-carbon-technology-deployment}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }