Policy, Regulation and Innovation in China's electricity and telecom industries / Loren Brandt;

Cover; Half-title page; Title page; Copyright page; Contents; List of Figures; List of Tables; List of Contributors; Acknowledgments; List of Abbreviations; Map of China; 1 Policy, Regulation, and Innovation in China's Electricity and Telecom Industries; 2 China's Electricity and Communications Regulation in Global Context; 3 Local Government and Firm Innovation in China's Clean Energy Sector; 4 Technology Integration in China's Electricity System: Central Targets and Local Challenges 5 When Global Technology Meets Local Standards: Reassessing China's Communications Policy in the Age of Platform Innovation6 The Search for High Power in China: State Grid Corporation of China; 7 Growth, Upgrading, and Limited Catch-Up in China's Semiconductor Industry; 8 Growth, Upgrading, and Excess Cost in China's Electric Power Sector; 9 China's Development of Wind and Solar Power; 10 Capability Upgrading and Catch-Up in Civil Nuclear Power: The Case of China; Index

The scale of China's innovation ambitions inspires worldwide commentary, much of it poorly informed. Focusing on electricity, telecommunication and semiconductors, this book offers a richly detailed account of China's innovation efforts. Massive application of human, policy and financial resources shows great promise, but institutional obstacles, conflicting objectives, ill-advised policies and Soviet-era legacies inject inefficiencies, resulting in a complex mosaic of success and failure in both technical and commercial dimensions. State Grid leads the world in high-voltage power transmission, while domestic semiconductors lag behind the international frontier. Electricity and telecom providers record impressive technical advances, but overinvestment and inefficient operation contribute to high costs and prices. Nuclear power combines technical excellence with commercial weakness. Cost reduction rather than new technology underpins commercial success in solar materials. The book's granular studies look beyond specific technologies to incorporate the policy matrix, regulatory structures and global developments into the appraisal of China's innovation achievements.