China pushing green technology, EU says

BEIJING, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Despite a reliance on carbon-based energy resources, China is leading the world in the development of wind and solar power, Swedish officials said.

Fredrik Reinfeldt, the Swedish prime minister and president of the European Council, paid a visit to Beijing to examine how the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases is tackling the challenges of global climate change.

The European Council said China relies on coal to meet 70 percent of its energy demand.

Meanwhile, though Beijing has moved to invest in public transportation and cut vehicle emissions, more work is needed as the industrialization of China expands.

China, however, now ranks third in the world in terms of wind power generation. Solar energy, for its part, supplies heating and hot water to as many as 150 million Chinese.

Reinfeldt said green energy advancements in highly industrialized nations would contribute to the effort to reduce the effects of gas emissions envisioned for this week's climate-change summit in Copenhagen, Denmark.

"We need further investment in renewable energy in order to meet the challenge of climate change together," said the Swedish premier.