‘Clean energy sector the key to doing business with Beijing,’ says ACBC president David Olsson

Corporate Australia’s peak advocacy group for trade and investment with China says it will use the clean energy sector as a potential breakthrough area of co-­operation.

Australia China Business Council president David Olsson. Picture: Hollie Adams

Corporate Australia’s peak advocacy group for trade and investment with China says it will use the clean energy sector as a potential breakthrough area of co-­operation despite the ongoing political tension between Canberra and Beijing.

Australia China Business Council president David Olsson, in correspondence with members, said the organisation saw climate change, clean tech and the global move towards net zero emissions as opportunities for co-operation between the two countries.

“There are no winners in the current standoff (between Australia and China),” he said in his letter. “ACBC is firm in its conviction that Australia’s national interests are best served by open trade and investment with China.”

Mr Olsson said the ACBC planned to “begin a program of activities to elevate engagement with China to address the global climate challenge”.

“We will explore those areas where there are opportunities for strategic partnership and collaboration,” he added.

ACBC has appointed Sydney renewable energy executive Anthony Coles, on the board of the organisation, to lead a series of clean energy initiatives this year as part of the effort. Mr Coles said it was “time for a new narrative” around the Australia China relationship that highlighted areas of potential “strategic collaboration” between companies in both countries. This included “engaging productively on a shared global risk – climate change”.

Details of how to progress the strategy are expected to be discussed at an ACBC board meeting later this month.

The move by the ACBC follows its successful online dialogue late last year between senior representatives of Australian companies including BHP, Fortescue, Woodside and Rio Tinto, with senior Chinese business leaders.

The move was the first time senior business leaders in the two countries had had a high-level dialogue in several years.

While Beijing has hit out at Australian exports in several sectors including coal, wine, barley and seafood, China has remained the country’s largest trading partner with continued strong exports of iron ore, LNG, agricultural products and others including dairy and health-related products.

Mr Olsson told his members the ACBC “was determined to play a constructive role in rebuilding trust and confidence in the Australian and Chinese business communities”.

“We are not blind to the very real pressures that go hand in hand with strategic competition,” he said.

“Nor are we naive in hankering for a return to the way things were.

“That’s simply not going to happen.”

Mr Olsson said it was important to look for ways to continue trade and business co-operation between the two countries.

“Tentative first steps were made in December … when an important ACBC initiative resulted in restoration of a business dialogue between senior representatives of leading Chinese and Australian companies.

“We plan to maintain momentum and build on the success of last year’s dialogue,” he said.

“We have reaffirmed our commitment to help members understand the strategic environment that is driving the world’s second-largest economy and Australia’s No 1 trading partner.”

Climate change and clean energy have emerged as areas of potential collaboration between China and the West at a time of major differences, including China’s human rights policies and its treatment of Muslims in the western province of Xinjiang.

This was reaffirmed by a co-­operation agreement on climate change between presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping around last year’s climate summit in Glasgow.