In order to at least make it understandable how confusing the Chinese subsidy network is, the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) has now attempted to collect all funding measures for the wind industry. Frank Bickenbach is co-author of the study and China expert. In principle, this data has been accessible for a long time, he says: “But I would assume that it is only known to a small group of interested parties.” And so his paper offers a unique insight into China’s complex subsidy network.
“China has a fairly sophisticated set of instruments to support companies in industries that it wants to advance,” explained Jacob Gunter, economist and China expert at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (Merics), in a recent interview with WirtschaftsWoche. The government’s subsidies are not comparable in scope to Europe, but are on a completely different level.