This year is the 50th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (1972-2022). To mark this occasion, the UN announced to convene the “Stockholm +50” High-level International Conference themed “A Healthy Planet for the Prosperity of All - Our Responsibility, Our Opportunity”. During this event, the UN Science-Policy-Business Forum on the Environment (UN-SPBF) will convene its Fourth High-Level Global Session in Stockholm, Sweden, from 31 May to 4 June 2022.
On June 1, 2022, Li Zhenguo, founder and president of LONGi, took part in a high-level leadership dialogue “Stockholm +100: Shaping our Common Future” via video. The leadership dialogue marked the presence of experts from UN organizations and global business organizations as well as corporate executives, who spoke on rebuilding multilateralism, making affordable and clean energy accessible to all, eliminating global inequality and achieving prosperity for everyone.
Given the fact that carbon neutrality has become a global consensus, renewable energy has become the cornerstone to support the global energy transition. The rising proportion of renewable energy represented by solar photovoltaic in its newly installed capacity is the general trend. By the end of March 2022, the global cumulative solar photovoltaic installed capacity successfully surpassed the 1TW mark, with the solar industry officially entering the terawatt era. According to forecasts, new PV installations globally will need to reach 1500GW-2000GW by 2030, with 30 years of uninterrupted installation, to form effective support for the global energy transition and establish the groundwork for achieving global carbon neutrality. Li Zhenguo highlighted the current situation of the global PV industry through video at the conference.
In terms of rebuilding multilateralism and eliminating global inequality, developing countries and LDCs are still in the process of development, so it is a natural trend for their energy consumption to continue to rise. However, developing countries and LDCs also need to make efforts to move towards a green and low-carbon energy transition path. These countries should formulate and improve policies and roadmaps related to energy transition as soon as possible to promote the transition from traditional fossil energy consumption to clean energy consumption. “The complete development and utilization of solar energy is of great significance to forging global multilateral relations and the elimination of gaps,” Li Zhenguo commented.
Since 2010, solar photovoltaic technology innovation has reduced the cost of electricity by more than 90% and is now the most economical source of electricity in most countries around the world. Through technological innovation, LONGi has continuously reduced the cost of solar photovoltaic electricity, allowing more people around the world, particularly those in developing and less developed countries and regions, to enjoy affordable and clean energy. For example, in the desert areas of Egypt and Africa, which are far from the power grid, most of the electricity generation depends on diesel generators. LONGi's modules have been incorporated into an "off-grid solar water pumping" system, which drives pumps to extract groundwater through solar photovoltaic power generation to meet the needs of local residents for irrigation and domestic use, yielding both economic and social benefits. This will in turn contribute to the sustainable development of the area. Making affordable and clean energy accessible to all is crucial to eliminating global inequalities and building a healthy planet where everyone can thrive.
“LONGi attaches great importance to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) and continues to promote their integration into our business value chain, fully integrating the promotion of sustainable development concepts and actions into corporate strategies and operations,” said Li Zhenguo, founder and president of LONGi, at the Stockholm +50 High-level International Conference. In the company’s recently released sustainability report, LONGi has described in detail its practices and performance in ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) in 2021, and responded positively to the UN Sustainable Development Goals through practical governance guidelines and management practices.
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