Sichuan Province and North Rhine-Westphalia convene green and low-carbon transition dialogue in Düsseldorf
On April 22, 2026, back-to-back with the China (Sichuan) and Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia) Economic and Investment Conference, a high-level delegation from Sichuan Province, one of China’s major energy hubs, met with energy sector experts from North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) in Düsseldorf. The GIZ Energy team in China supported this important exchange to discuss how national climate ambitions can be turned into practical, regional solutions. This subnational dialogue contributes to the wider Sino-German Climate Change and Green Transition Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism.
Why state-to-province partnerships matter for energy transition
While China has committed to ambitious carbon goals, the practical challenge and real execution happens at the provincial level. These regions must balance rising energy demand with a still coal-dominated power mix. By leveraging Germany’s experience in integrating climate policy with subnational decarbonisation, we facilitate peer-to-peer exchange between German States and Chinese provinces and thus extend bilateral energy cooperation on the national level to concrete local implementation.
By connecting Germany’s industrial heartlands, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg, with China’s leading energy provinces, Sichuan and Jiangsu respectively, we aim to jointly develop decarbonisation measures for the energy sector and demonstrate how subnational collaboration can translate shared climate ambitions into concrete solutions for the integrated energy systems of tomorrow.
Action: aligning regional strengths for mutual leaning
During the dialogue, Sichuan shared its green progress while the Ministry of Economy, Industry, Climate Action and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia (MWIKE) presented NRW’s energy and heating strategy. Providing a solid technical foundation, the Wuppertal Institute presented a comparative study detailing both regions’ complementary status and strengths on energy transition.
Following deep dives into green electricity and carbon tracking, both sides shared mutual understanding on focal areas for future cooperation. They committed to enhancing peer-to-peer learning through visits, deepening cooperation on energy storage, clean energy development, and accelerating the collaborative development of green industrial chains, advancing the low-carbon transition of traditional sectors, and improving cooperation mechanisms for carbon footprint management.
Institutional anchoring
The convened dialogue was hosted by the Sichuan Provincial Government and co-organized by Sichuan Development Reform Commission, Sichuan Energy Administration, GIZ and Sichuan Energy Development Group, connected government departments, research institutes, and key energy enterprises. This dialogue directly advances the Sino-German Climate Change and Green Transition Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism, anchoring the Sino-German energy cooperation on subnational level under the International Climate Initiative (IKI) supported project – Supporting China’s climate targets through ambitious green and low carbon energy transition. The GIZ energy team in China implements the project with China Electricity Council (CEC) and the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy.
