As it becomes increasingly more clear that the future of energy usage lies in sustainable technologies, countries all over the world have been trying to get a leg in the front door. Lately, China has been on a roll with it’s green projects, so much so that foreign companies have been complaining about being excluded. China has been taking all sorts of measures to protect it’s own alternative energy industries, hoping to insure that it will soon dominate the market globally.

This spring, The Chinese government authorized it’s first solar power plant and took bids for 25 large contracts to supply the wind turbines. Six of the submissions were multinational. Europe, especially Germany, which has held a reputation for being the leader in efficient and high-quality wind turbine machines, was excited to get in on the project. However, one of the requirements for the bid contest was that at least 80 percent of the equipment be made locally, in China, and another was that the turbines have a capacity of more than 1,000 kilowatts. These requirements put European manufactures at a large disadvantage, as the popular design for a European turbine has a 850-kilowatt capacity. Also, with the 80% Chinese equipment rule, Non-Chinese manufacturers had to relocate to build their own factories in China.

When the wining contracts were announced, China chose seven domestic companies, and disqualified every multinational submission, on the basis of technical grounds.

It is clear that china is trying to be strategic in it’s green industry goals. While the World Trade Organization rules demand that countries not instate local content requirements, China is off the hook because it has still not signed the WTO side agreement on government procurement. Manufacturers are frustrated, and as this situation, and the earth, continue to heat up, it’s safe to say we can expect the alternative energy industry to encounter some interesting challenges.