Dec082014
Posted at 10:39 AM
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker and U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz today announced that they will lead a Business Development Mission to China in April 2015, focused on industries supporting Smart Cities and Smart Growth. The trade mission will help U.S. companies launch or increase their business in China in areas such as green buildings, building energy retrofitting, building management, green data centers, carbon capture utilization and storage, energy efficiency technologies, clean air and water technologies, waste treatment technologies, smart grid and green transportation.
This mission is one of several efforts underway that will help strengthen and expand U.S.-China clean energy cooperation following the joint announcement made by President Obama and President Xi on November 12 in Beijing on the two countries’ post-2020 climate targets. China is the world’s largest energy consumer and the leading emitter of greenhouse gases, and this mission will help China meet its stated goal of peaking CO2emissions around 2030, and increasing their non-fossil fuel share of all energy to around 20 percent by 2030.
“As the country’s Chief Commercial Advocate, a key part of my job is helping U.S. companies connect with business opportunities around the world, and China’s energy sector holds huge potential for U.S. firms,” said Secretary Pritzker. “China will continue to have tremendous energy needs as the country urbanizes and grows its middle class, and American companies have the expertise necessary to serve as partners in building clean and efficient infrastructure. I am thrilled that Secretary of Energy Moniz will be joining me on this mission to represent the best of what the U.S. has to offer when it comes to world-class businesses and unparalleled know-how in clean technology.”
This will be Secretary Pritzker’s fifth trade mission since taking office in June 2013, and her first joint trade mission with a fellow cabinet secretary.
“As the two largest economies, energy consumers, and carbon emitters, the United States and China must advance affordable clean energy, while simultaneously mitigating the long-term threat of climate change,” said Secretary Moniz. “This mission will deepen our cooperation to promote a low-carbon economy by expanding U.S. company exports in China and helping to facilitate their involvement in Smart City planning and deployment of cutting-edge clean energy technologies.”
U.S. goods exports in 2013 to China were $121.7 billion, up 10.2 percent from the previous year. Corresponding U.S. imports from China were $440.4 billion, up 3.5 percent.
The Business Development Mission delegation will be composed of senior executives from 20-25 U.S. firms, representing the mission’s target sectors supporting Smart Cities and Smart Growth. This collaborative interagency approach with the Department of Energy highlights the shared interest among U.S. Government agencies in promoting China as a critical overseas market, and helping American businesses of all sizes sell their goods and services overseas.
Businesses interested in participating in this trade mission should complete an online application at the China mission website at http://www.export.gov/ChinaMission2015. For more information, you can contact the U.S. Department of Commerce Office of Business Liaison at (202) 482-1360 or [email protected].
The application deadline for the trade mission is Friday, January 23, 2015.
