Day: September 26, 2024

Water reclaimed from treated residential sewage and collected rainwater has become the second most important urban water supply source for the Chinese capital of Beijing, according to the municipal water authority.

In the year 2023, the city recycled 1.28 billion cubic meters of water, of which 1.18 billion cubic meters was used for ecological and environmental purposes to replenish the city’s natural water resources, according to the department’s data.

“The amount of recycled water accounted for nearly 30 percent of the city’s total water consumption last year, a record high, making it the stable second water source in Beijing,” said Fu Chaochen, Beijing Water Authority director of sewage treatment and reclaimed water management.

Since the beginning of 2023, Beijing has extended its sewage collection pipe network by 729 km and renovated 50 km long rainwater drainage pipelines. The city’s sewage treatment capacity has reached 7.85 million cubic meters per day, said Fu.

Six water recycling plants are curr
ently under construction in Beijing. Meanwhile, the water authority has launched a massive cleaning work of rainwater drainage ditches and outlets for better rainwater collection.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Guided by remote control, a mechanical loader can upload tonnes of materials or even transport them to production lines — all without a driver behind the wheel.

This intelligent loader, developed and manufactured by China’s Guangxi LiuGong Machinery Co., Ltd., is gaining popularity among mining and construction companies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.

“Catering to demands for high-end, diversified, and personalized products in the construction machinery market, LiuGong has focused on the electrification, digitization, interconnectivity and intelligence of machinery, with double-digit annual growth in RandD investment,” said Li Dongchun, a senior manager of the company.

At the ongoing China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning, south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the construction machinery maker is showcasing eight electric products, including loaders, excavators and forklifts in response to growing interest in Chinese-made smart and green products across ASEAN countries.

C
hina-ASEAN trade has recorded steady expansion over the years. Official data showed that China has been ASEAN’s largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years, with bilateral trade surging from 876.4 billion yuan (about 124.6 billion U.S. dollars) in 2004 to 6.41 trillion yuan in 2023, averaging an 11-percent annual growth rate.

As China revs up efforts to foster tech-intensive and environmentally-friendly new growth engines, smart and green products and technologies are capturing the attention of both exhibitors and visitors at the expo.

A signing ceremony of the expo on Tuesday saw 109 deals inked, spanning strategic emerging sectors such as new energy, advanced manufacturing and electronic information.

Kao Kim Hourn, secretary-general of ASEAN, said that China and ASEAN countries are exploring new cooperation opportunities in fields such as artificial intelligence and clean energy, furthering the common goals of innovation and sustainable development.

For green technology companies like Envision Grou
p, the expo offers a chance to tap into ASEAN’s growing market as developing countries are grappling with the challenge of green energy transition.

“The expo is a great platform to help us establish connections with more customers from ASEAN countries,” said Wu Jiakun, a representative from Envision Group.

The company has been collaborating with Vietnam on wind turbine generators since 2015. To date, it has established offices in seven ASEAN countries, including Cambodia and Laos.

Wu expressed interest in the renewable energy market within ASEAN countries, particularly in wind turbines and energy storage systems.

Many renewable energy industries in China have matured and are eager to share their experience with ASEAN countries. Such collaboration could create a win-win situation for both the economies and societies, injecting new green momentum into the development of neighboring countries, he said.

In Thailand’s Sirindhorn Reservoir, a China-assisted floating photovoltaic project, one of the country’s l
argest hydro-floating solar hybrid projects, has brought it closer to its green development goals.

China Energy Engineering Corporation Limited, the project’s constructor, is a regular exhibitor at the expo, highlighting the project as a prime example of Chinese enterprises’ commitment to advancing green energy cooperation within ASEAN.

“ASEAN is a key strategic market for our company’s international business development. Additionally, advancing clean energy projects in ASEAN countries contributes to the region’s green and low-carbon development,” said Song Hailiang, chairman of the company.

Shi Zhongjun, secretary-general of the ASEAN-China Centre, noted that China-ASEAN cooperation has expanded into new areas, unlocking vast potential in emerging industries. In particular, the two sides enjoy broad prospects in terms of jointly developing new quality productive forces, he said.

Given that Chinese and ASEAN economies are interdependent and the two sides are also each other’s largest trading partners, pro
moting bilateral cooperation on technological innovation and transfer will help both sides create new growth paths, Kao said.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

NamPower plans to move all its customers from the current post – paid billing system to a new pre – paid billing system to prevent local authorities from accumulating debt in electricity tariffs . The move will allow local authorities to manage their electricity usage , modernise metering infrastructure and reduce operating costs of utilities which are passed down to customers . In a meeting with the management of the Keetmanshoop municipality on Wednesday , NamPower senior manager for supply business and customer service Johannes Van Wyk said following the accumulation of debt experienced during the COVID – 19 pandemic , the power utility was instructed by its board of directors to come up with initiatives that would aid local authorities , hence the introduction of a pre – paid billing system . ‘ The new billing system is similar to the one used by households , the only difference is that bulk users or the municipality will not buy tokens from NamPower , to upload it on their operator , however the operato
r will open and close depending on the number of credits the municipality has on its account with NamPower ,’ he explained . According to Van Wyk , the project was initially earmarked for defaulting customers , but it was however decided that it be introduced to all local authorities to avoid two billing systems , The project is currently used by the Rehoboth town council as a pilot since May this year and will run until October . ‘ We have tested the system from May this year in Rehoboth , which is on a five – month pre – payment system , and they have proved that the concept can work , so there is no reason why other municipalities cannot do the same ,’ he said . Head of Keetmanshoop Electricity Business Unit , Lee Mwemba in response informed the meeting that the municipality will next week share and consult the residents and council before they consider entering into an agreement with NamPower . ‘ We have to present this to the residents and tell them the how they could benefit from this before we go to co
uncil to endorse the contract ,’ he said .

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Since its inception in 2004, the Chinese lunar exploration program, also known as the Chang’e project after Chinese Moon goddess Chang’e, has greatly helped expand humanity’s knowledge of the Moon and the broader cosmos.

The recent Chang’e-6 mission, which brought back lunar soil from the Moon’s far side for the first time, is just one of its many groundbreaking achievements.

China’s lunar exploration has never been about showcasing its scientific prowess, but rather about a shared journey to understand the Earth’s celestial neighbor.

The mission, which included international payloads from the European Space Agency, France, Italy, and Pakistan, highlighted China’s commitment to fostering a broader and more inclusive approach to space exploration.

This inclusive approach will continue with two additional Chang’e missions, scheduled for 2026 and 2028. With six international payloads already selected for Chang’e-7 and over 30 proposals collected for Chang’e-8, China is further opening the doors of lunar res
earch to the world.

These missions are part of a larger blueprint for an International Lunar Research Station, a platform that aims to bring together space scientists from across the globe in the spirit of equality, mutual benefits, peaceful utilization and win-win cooperation.

China’s space agenda is nevertheless not confined to lunar missions. Such projects as the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System and the China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite attest to its endeavor to form open and inclusive partnerships.

Unlike the exclusive space clubs led by some traditional spacefaring powers, China is keen to lower the barriers to entry to space and invite participation from countries with emerging space capabilities.

As of November 2023, China had signed over 150 intergovernmental space cooperation agreements with more than 50 countries and international organizations. In an era where space exploration is increasingly viewed as a shared human endeavor, China’s attainments resonate far beyond its borders, a vivid
reminder that the universe belongs to the whole humanity.

From providing satellite technology to Brazil for rainforest monitoring, to enabling remote education in Laos via the LaoSat-1 satellite, and to aiding Tajikistan in dam monitoring with the BeiDou system, China has been continuously extending the benefits of space technology.

The international community has nodded recognition. In an interview with Xinhua earlier this year, Aarti Holla-Maini, director of the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, depicted China as a “well-respected spacefaring nation,” applauding its collaborative efforts to build capacity, reduce disaster risks, and help all countries, especially the developing ones, gain access to space.

Her remarks were echoed by Neil Melville-Kenney, a technical officer from the European Space Agency, who emphasized that the very nature of space exploration demands thinking of humanity as one.

“It is absolutely key for us to continue our young journey out into the cosmos by working toget
her,” he said.

Indeed, as China emerges as a key player in deep space exploration, the Chang’e era created by China represents more than just a series of successful lunar missions, but a broader vision of shared human progress.

Much the way the successive Chang’e probes have traversed part of the boundless cosmos, China’s space cooperation transcends borders, inviting nations worldwide to extend the frontiers of human knowledge together.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

An expected surge in global demand for AI-focused semiconductors in the coming years could lead to the next wave of chip shortage, according to a latest industry report.

The global market for AI-related hardware and software was expected to grow between 40 percent and 55 percent annually, reaching between 780 billion U.S. dollars and 990 billion dollars by 2027, said an annual report released Wednesday by Boston-based consultancy Bain and Company.

“Companies are moving beyond the experimentation phase and are beginning to scale generative AI across the enterprise,” said David Crawford, chairman of Bain’s global technology practice, in a press release.

The report predicted another chip shortage brought by surging demand for graphics processing units (GPUs) from data centers, which are critical for the training of huge AI models, and for AI-enabled smartphones and laptops, with an AI-driven surge in demand for GPUs alone expected to increase total demand for certain upstream components by 30 percent or more
by 2026.

“These trends, when paired with geopolitical tensions, could trigger the next shortage of semiconductors,” Bain warned, reminding the semiconductor industry of a severe shortage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The global chip shortage happened during the pandemic due to supply chain disruption and a rise in demand for consumer electronics. The crisis hit many industries hard, particularly the automotive industry.

The report’s authors explained that the semiconductor supply chain is “incredibly complex,” and a demand increase of about 20 percent or more has a high likelihood of upsetting the equilibrium and causing a chip shortage.

The AI explosion across the confluence of the large end markets could easily surpass that threshold, creating vulnerable chokepoints throughout the supply chain, they noted.

Bain advised chip suppliers and buyers to “act quickly to get ahead of this next, potentially massive crunch,” since it’s difficult to balance semiconductor supply and demand given the industry’s fas
t-moving technologies, large capital requirements, and long lead times to add production capacity.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

The Chinese government and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) will jointly hold a training course on medical assistance and protection concerning chemical weapons from Oct. 13 to 19.

The announcement was made by Zhang Xiaogang, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, at a press conference on Thursday.

Nearly 30 trainees from over 20 member states of the OPCW will gather at the Air Force Medical University to take training classes about the symptoms, diagnosis and treatment of poisoning from chemical weapons, and the organization and implementation of anti-chemical medical rescue among other topics, Zhang said.

Highlighting the joint practice of the Chemical Weapons Convention among the OPCW member states, the course aims to enhance the countries’ rescue and response capabilities concerning chemical weapons and strengthen their medical prevention and rescue capacity, according to the spokesperson.

Source: The Namibia News Agency