Dialogue on “Energy Transition: Forge Ahead Together for a Green Future”
World Environment Day is celebrated on 5 June every year. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has set the theme of this year’s World Environment Day as "Only One Earth."
On 31 May, an online dialogue was held by Fudan University and PETRONAS under the theme of "Energy Transition: Forge Ahead Together for a Green Future."
Established in 1974 and wholly owned by the Government of Malaysia, PETRONAS, a Malaysian oil and gas company, is vested with all oil and gas resources in Malaysia and is ranked among Fortune Global 500's largest corporations in the world.
The Fudan-PETRONAS Dialogue was co-organized by the Institute of International Studies (IIS) of Fudan University, Department of Environment Science and Engineering (DESE) of Fudan University, and International Students Office (ISO) of Fudan University.
Apart from faculty members and students from Fudan University, the online dialogue was also attended by nearly 100 participants from Xiamen University, Beijing Foreign Studies University and China University of Petroleum. Professor Qi Huaigao, vice dean of IIS, Fudan University, moderated the dialogue.
Liu Li
In her speech, Liu Li, director of International Students office, Fudan University, referred to the collaboration between Fudan University and Malaysia as a vital component of Fudan's international partnerships. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Fudan University received about 7,000 international students from nearly 140 countries around the world every year. Each year, the university sent delegations to dozens of partnering Malaysian high schools to facilitate the enrollment process and organize admission interviews. In January 2016, Fudan established the Malaysia Alumni Association of Fudan University in Kuala Lumpur. In the spring semester of 2022 alone, 212 of the 2,693 international students enrolled in Fudan were Malaysian students. Fudan University looks forward to cooperating with PETRONAS in the training and employment of students. Together the two parties can make contributions to creating a clean, beautiful world and a shared future for mankind.
Lisy Li
Lisy Li, chair of PETRONAS China, shared the global business layout, business scope in China, sustainability efforts, and net-zero carbon emissions target of PETRONAS. She believed that with the rapid growth of the new energy industry and the accelerated energy transition, the global new energy industry is facing a development dilemma. A healthy industrial chain of the global new energy cannot be built by a single country or company. Stronger international collaborations in the industry are a must. The lack of professionals, which has become an urgent issue for the global new energy industry, must be addressed by closer collaborations between educational institutions and the energy sector. Both parties should be more devoted to building the capacity of personnel to break the development bottleneck of the global new energy industry.
Ghoh Ban Lee
Ghoh Ban Lee, general manager of Commercial and Finance at PETRONAS New Energy, shared his views on the key opportunities and challenges in PETRONAS' new energy business and energy transition. According to him, under PETRONAS’ "2050 Net Zero Carbon Emissions Vision", the company will provide global clients with three low-carbon solutions based on renewable energy, hydrogen and electric vehicles. Citing the PETRONAS Cultural Beliefs of "Customer Focused, Innovate Now, Be Enterprising, Speak Up and Courage to Act", he shared his work experience at PETRONAS and encouraged young students to ponder over their career choices and directions.
Wang Yutao
Wang Yutao, professor at DESE, Fudan University, said he was impressed by PETRONAS' "2050 Net Zero Carbon Emissions Vision" and its efforts to fulfill its corporate social responsibility, such as providing low-carbon solutions. He noted that one of the key objectives of the Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by China in 2013, is to protect the planet and promote green development. He hoped to see more collaborations between Fudan University and businesses in areas such as clean production, circular economy and renewable energy.
During the Q&A session, students and faculty members engaged in active discussions on issues such as the development and career prospects in the new energy industry, ways of collaborations to achieve energy transition and net-zero emissions, and collaborations between PETRONAS and Chinese new energy companies.
After the Fudan-PETRONAS Dialogue, Professor Wu Xinbo, dean of IIS, Fudan University, Professor Wang Lin, dean of DESE, Fudan University, and Liu Li signed letters of appreciation for the two speakers from PETRONAS, hoping this dialogue could usher in a new chapter of cooperation between the two parties.
UNEP has set the theme of 2022 World Environment Day as “Only One Earth”
The Fudan-PETRONAS Dialogue was an ice-breaking journey for PETRONAS since it’s the first time for the company to communicate with young Chinese university students at campus events. Through the dialogue, Fudan and PETRONAS hope to build consensus on energy transition and green development, so that more companies and young students can stay committed to the vision of sustainable development and contribute to forging a green and beautiful future with net-zero carbon emissions.
Presented by Fudan University Media Center
