Notices by Yogthos (yogthos@social.marxist.network)

China released a new list of its major low-carbon demo projects for 2025. All of them are important and ground-breaking projects, 101 of them in total.

National Demonstration Projects enjoy direct financial support, streamlined policy approvals, priority in government procurement, access to advanced technologies and talent, and long-term institutional backing. These projects reflect national priorities for low-carbon transition.

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#china #cleanenergy #environment

There are three main categories.

1. Carbon source reduction (50 Projects) focused on scaling renewable energy generation, grid modernization, storage systems, and green hydrogen production
2. Process carbon reduction (44 Projects) target industrial decarbonization, sustainable transportation, and energy systems efficiency
3. End-use carbon Sequestration (7 Projects) explore large-scale carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), including converting captured CO₂ into synthetic fuels

Compared to Batch 1 (47 projects total in 2023), Batch 2 reflects a dramatic expansion in both scope and scale. Let's take a look at some highlights of the new initiatives.

Let's take a look at a few notable projects from Batch 2 below.

A 700 MW offshore wind farm off Fujian's coast stands out as a “large capacity deep water” pioneer. Utilizing 39 turbines (18 MW each) in waters over 40 meters deep, it aims for a 49% capacity factor, far exceeding typical offshore wind performance. With coastal provinces constrained by land scarcity, such projects could unlock China's offshore potential, positioning 2025 as a breakout year for the sector.

A pilot in Xianyang, Shaanxi, will drill 2–3 km into the Earth's crust to deploy a district heating system powered by geothermal energy. Once operational, it will heat 1.1 million square meters of buildings (10,000–20,000 homes) and displace 20,000 tonnes of coal annually. This model, inspired by projects like France's Rittershoffen, could revolutionize heating in northern China, where coal-fired combined heat and power (CHP) plants dominate.

A hybrid renewable facility in Inner Mongolia aims to replace a coal-fired captive power plant at a Chinalco aluminum smelter. With 1 GW of wind, 200 MW of solar, and 135 MW/540 MWh of storage, the project could offset ~3,500 GWh of coal-generated electricity yearly. Success here could chart a path for decarbonizing energy-intensive industries reliant on captive coal. This addresses a critical hurdle for China's post-2030 emissions trajectory.

Batch 2 includes 10 green hydrogen projects targeting 780,000 tonnes of annual production. The largest, in Inner Mongolia's Hinggan League, pairs a 2 GW Goldwind farm with 500,000 tonnes/year of green hydrogen-derived ammonia and methanol. As China eyes hydrogen for steelmaking, shipping, and aviation, these pilots aim to solidify its position in the global hydrogen race.

Six projects test compressed air energy storage (CAES), positioned as a mid-duration solution between batteries and pumped hydro. The Qinghai pilot (60 MW/10 hours) highlights long-duration potential, while others (300–350 MW/4+ hours) target grid flexibility. As power markets mature, CAES could complement renewables in balancing supply and demand.

Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) projects integrate industrial demand response, EV charging, and storage into grid-responsive hubs. While current pilots are small-scale (e.g., industrial parks), their success hinges on evolving power markets that incentivize real-time load management. With EV adoption surging, VPPs could soon play a central role in grid stability.

While Wall Street panics over the latest market meltdown, China shrugs because around 70% of its economy isn’t hostage to casino capitalism. When your economy is publicly owned, you don’t need a bailout, you just need a five-year plan.

https://www.piie.com/research/piie-charts/2024/chinas-private-sector-has-lost-ground-state-sector-has-gained-share-among

#china #socialism

Absolutely incredible to watch U.S. treasury secretary openly joke about the US destroying critical German energy infrastructure.

Liberals love to LARP as leftists and co-opt the label in order to neutralize opposition to capitalism.

The real left is counter-hegemonic, anti-imperialist, and a direct threat to the status quo. But grifters like Natalie Wynn aren’t here to smash the system. Their goal is to move you from radical to ‘reasonable,’ from class war to polite debate, until you’re neutered and harmless.

Don’t beg for crumbs at the liberal table. Build your own damn table.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHSkxaqfO38

#us #uspol

@dan613 amusingly, Engels identified this problem within capitalism over a century ago

Ever since the beginning of this (19th) century, the condition of industry has constantly fluctuated between periods of prosperity and periods of crisis; nearly every five to seven years, a fresh crisis has intervened, always with the greatest hardship for workers, and always accompanied by general revolutionary stirrings and the direct peril to the whole existing order of things.

https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm

@dan613 meanwhile, notice how China hasn't had a single economic crisis since the revolution, and enjoyed steady economic growth this whole time

Canada's inequality crisis worsens as billionaires hoard wealth while rents crush workers. StatsCan data shows the widening rich-poor gap is eroding the very foundation of society. Time to choose: oligarchy or justice.

https://jacobin.com/2025/04/canada-wealth-inequality-billionaires-housing/

#canada #cdnpoli #capitalism

United States announces following reciprocal tariffs

🇨🇱 Chile 10%
🇮🇳 India 26%
🇮🇱 Israel 17%
🇧🇷 Brazil 10%
🇨🇳 China 34%
🇯🇵 Japan 24%
🇹🇷 Turkey 10%
🇹🇼 Taiwan 32%
🇻🇳 Vietnam 46%
🇵🇰 Pakistan 29%
🇹🇭 Thailand 36%
🇦🇺 Australia 10%
🇲🇾 Malaysia 24%
🇨🇴 Colombia 10%
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka 44%
🇸🇬 Singapore 10%
🇮🇩 Indonesia 32%
🇰🇭 Cambodia 49%
🇵🇭 Philippines 17%
🇨🇭 Switzerland 31%
🇧🇩 Bangladesh 37%
🇰🇷 South Korea 25%
🇿🇦 South Africa 30%
🇬🇧 United Kingdom 10%
🇪🇺 European Union 20%

#economy #us #geopolitics

A report by VantageScore shows an increasing number of Americans are falling behind on car loan payments, leading to a decline in the average credit score.

The average loan balance rose by over $400, and late-stage delinquencies, particularly for student loans, increased by 25 basis points.

The average credit score dropped to 701, with VantageScore attributing the decline to growing car loan balances and student debt repayment pressures.

https://www.investopedia.com/more-americans-are-falling-behind-on-car-payments-vantagescore-data-shows-11704569

#us #economy

Severance would be capitalism’s ultimate triumph where the individual becomes both oppressor and oppressed.

The procedure bifurcates consciousness, creating an "innie" enslaved to labor in service of an "outie" who blissfully detached from their own complicity. It is capitalism's ideal endpoint, where exploitation is outsourced to a version of oneself, rendering resistance impossible and solidarity obsolete.

#Severance #LateStageCapitalism

True democracy is only possible when the means of production are publicly owned. Only then can resources and labour be directed in a way that benefits majority of the people.

Lenin and the Bolsheviks envisioned a new world based on principles of justice, equality, and unity. They imagined a society where all work together for collective benefit, free from class divisions that perpetuate global strife.

Today we are told that we cannot conceive a new form of society, only superficial modifications to our current system. But what sort of life is it without aspirations for a better future? Do we simply renounce dreaming forevermore?

#socialism