China is on its way to becoming the world’s clean technology powerhouse because of continued heavy investment in the sector, according to an HSBC report.

 

While the sector worldwide was flat last year, China contributed 24% of investment, up from 6% in 2004, the Financial Times said. 

 

China still ranks behind the US, Japan and several west European economies, but Joaquim de Lima, co-author of the HSBC report, told the FT this was just the start. “China is emerging in this space as the dominant force,” he said.

 

Sales of cleantech gear – which includes nuclear and alternative energy sources, climate finance, smart grid, water and pollution management and other climate-related investments – totalled $530 billion, slightly down from the $534 billion recorded the previous year.

 

This makes the climate sector bigger than both the wireless telecom and the media sectors, and bigger than the aerospace and defence industries combined, the bank said.

 

de Lima said the Chinese government’s policies last year were a major factor, funnelling billions of dollars of stimulus spending into alternative energy, energy efficiency and water and pollution controls.