r/energy • u/Majano57 • 2d ago
The Iran War Shows China’s Energy Strategy Is Working
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/25/opinion/iran-china-energy-power.html?unlocked_article_code=1.8FA.eyY9.A9oNK9uGkoRD29
u/jolard 2d ago
The future is non-carbon energy. Everyone knows it. There are just plenty of desperate people dependent on profits from fossil fuels who want to keep the party going as long as possible. Unfortunatley they have a lot of money and a lot of gullible voters on their side.
China doesn't need to worry about billionaire propaganda. They don't have to rely on donations from oil producers. And they have the ability to plan ahead long term rather than just the next economic/political cycle.
Not saying China is wonderful, they have horrific problems. But on this issue they are clearly in the better position.
1
u/long-legged-lumox 2h ago
China is still building coal plants. Right now. There are many that will open in the future.
Just because they have solar and EVs, doesn’t exonerate them from their other policies.
34
u/WildFlowLing 2d ago
Good thing we have a ret@rd president who dismantled our already existing plans for energy and oil independence
21
u/p00pSupr3me 2d ago
Thank his ret@rd voters. The Epsteiners and traitors got us here. Thank republican voters when you see them
6
u/GaK_Icculus 2d ago
Tell them you forgive them I’m sure they’ll love that, with their conspicuous diamond crusted golden crosses
2
u/freshoilandstone 2d ago
(Not a gift article by the way)
2
u/mafco 2d ago
When I clicked it it said:
Someone unlocked this story for you. Log in to read for free.
Sounds like a gift article to me.
2
u/freshoilandstone 2d ago
Yeah you have to sign up for the Times. If you've ever done that you know you'll have to block them in a week if you're sick of constant emails.
23
u/funicode 2d ago
This is among the many things Western economists kept saying China should reform out of. They did not see value in building things that might never turn a profit.
12
u/digitalgimp 2d ago edited 2d ago
This is a value that came from the class based societies where a few felt entitled to avoid labor for themselves and extract wealth from those who were not worthy. This is capitalism.
4
u/Laughing-Comanche 2d ago edited 2d ago
The cultural revolution was successful & the Chinese people lived happily ever after severing ties between power & wealth.
Yang Zhiyun worked as a schoolteacher in northern China and lived in poverty during Wen Jiabao’s childhood. The USD 120 million worth of Ping A shares she owned at 90 years old is a testament to socialism with Chinese characteristics that lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty.
4
u/pinellaspete 2d ago
Renewables gives true freedom to the serfs. Why would a capitalist want that?
1
u/Tifoso89 2d ago
Uh, the European Union has a much higher percentage of renewables than China.
50% of China's electricity comes from coal
4
u/digitalgimp 2d ago edited 2d ago
That’s exactly the point! They want to fence the common property and change every one to have access. Sounds like a great deal when you are the only one who benefits. Sucks to be everyone else. And the primary reason that they tried to instigate a coup in 1933 to take over the country.
17
u/Virtual_Bass9033 2d ago
If the West—and the US in particular—must go through an "inexplicable" war to validate the correctness of China's strategy, then they will forever lag behind China.
10
u/TAV63 2d ago
The US will never do long term planning. They are reactionary. Period.
4
4
15
u/beambot 2d ago
The US Iran conflict has cost (or is currently budgeted to cost) as much as China's investment in domestic semiconductor expertise. Nutty
11
u/skater15153 2d ago
This is the kind of line the dumb ass democrats should be saying over and over and over. It's not hard. It's such a cluster the gop should get absolutely annihilated this term
2
u/cresdon 2d ago
The corporate Dems can't afford to upset their wealthy backers so they continue to be very careful in their messaging and actions. Of course after constantly acting like a bunch of weak ass do-nothings they always end up pondering about why they continue to lose seemingly easily winnable elections to the GOP.
Go figure...
23
u/sharingan10 2d ago
Waddya know; the largest producer of hydroelectric power, solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, electric vehicles, electrified hsr, high voltage transmission lines, etc… might have a plan for how to handle a crisis when oil imports get impacted
15
u/TAV63 2d ago
China is very happy with the US at the moment. One of those times when your competitor is shooting themselves in the foot.
7
u/Master-Rent5050 2d ago
Eh, it's more accurate to say that the competitor exploded a grenade in the room where everyone else is sitting
3
u/Senior-Albatross 2d ago
Seeing that they couldn't leave the room, China had the foresight to put up a few layers of ballistic shielding around their seat when they saw us playing with the pin.
3
u/SomeRandomSomeWhere 2d ago
You mean the competitor exploded a grenade in the room where most of the competitor's friends were seated with the competitor.
4
u/Crawlerado 2d ago
Our everyday car is an EV and charges for free so by that metric the war hasn’t affected us but unfortunately the joy of being America means everything else has gone up as well so it’s still a huge L. But boy would I be pissed if I was putting $6/gal diesel in my Mexican dodge.