China and US announce agreement to cooperate at Cop26 – as it happened

The two sides intend to cooperate on:

a. regulatory frameworks and environmental standards related to reducing emissions of greenhouse gases in the 2020s;

b. maximizing the societal benefits of the clean energy transition;

c. policies to encourage decarbonization and electrification of end-use sectors;

d. key areas related to the circular economy, such as green design and renewable resource utilization; and

e. deployment and application of technology such as CCUS and direct air capture.

Recognizing specifically the significant role that emissions of methane play in increasing temperatures, both countries consider increased action to control and reduce such emissions to be a matter of necessity in the 2020s. To this end:

a. The two countries intend to cooperate to enhance the measurement of methane emissions; to exchange information on their respective policies and programs for strengthening management and control of methane; and to foster joint research into methane emission reduction challenges and solutions.

b. The United States has announced the U.S. Methane Emissions Reduction Action Plan.

c. Taking into account the above cooperation, as appropriate, the two sides intend to do the following before COP 27:

i. They intend to develop additional measures to enhance methane emission control, at both the national and sub-national levels.

ii. In addition to its recently communicated NDC, China intends to develop a comprehensive and ambitious National Action Plan on methane aiming to achieve a significant effect on methane emissions control and reductions in the 2020s.

d. The United States and China intend to convene a meeting in the first half of 2022 to focus on the specifics of enhancing measurement and mitigation of methane, including through standards to reduce methane from the fossil and waste sectors, as well as incentives and programs to reduce methane from the agricultural sector.

In order to reduce CO2 emissions:

a. The two countries intend to cooperate on:

i. Policies that support the effective integration of high shares of low-cost intermittent renewable energy;

ii. Transmission policies that encourage efficient balancing of electricity supply and demand across broad geographies;

iii. Distributed generation policies that encourage integration of solar, storage, and other clean power solutions closer to electricity users; and

iv. Energy efficiency policies and standards to reduce electricity waste.

b. The United States has set a goal to reach 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035.

c. China will phase down coal consumption during the 15th Five Year Plan and make best efforts to accelerate this work.

Recognizing that eliminating global illegal deforestation would contribute meaningfully to the effort to reach the Paris goals, the two countries welcome the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use. The two sides intend to engage collaboratively in support of eliminating global illegal deforestation through effectively enforcing their respective laws on banning illegal imports.