When Canada announced earlier this year that it would allow a token number of Chinese-made electric vehicles into the country, the gesture didn’t seem so much about climate action as a sop to ease Chinese tariffs on Canadian canola.
Now, it very much appears like the opening gambit in a deeper engagement with China on clean energy. Following up on Prime Minister Mark Carney’s momentous meeting with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping in January, Industry Minister Melanie Joly was in Beijing last month to discuss the feasibility of Canadian-Chinese EV ventures.
Meanwhile, the Canada China Business Council is organizing a cleantech mission to China in Beijing in November.
The CBC is owned by China now.
