Offices

DOE China Office

Dr. Marco Di Capua, Executive Director, DOE China Office
U.S. Department of Energy China Office
No.9 Jian Guo Men Wai Ave.,
Beijing, 100600 China
Tel: 86-10-6532-0881
Fax:86-10-6532-0882

Staff
Ms. Michele Dash, Deputy Director
Ms. Shao Jun, Staff
Ms. Peng Ying, Staff

About DOE

The Department of Energy's (DOE) overarching mission is to advance the national, economic, and energy security of the United States; to promote scientific and technological innovation in support of that mission; and to ensure the environmental cleanup of the national nuclear weapons complex. The Department's strategic goals to achieve the mission are designed to deliver results along five strategic themes:

1. Energy Security:  Promoting America’s energy security through reliable, clean, and affordable energy
2. Nuclear Security:  Ensuring America’s nuclear security
3. Scientific Discovery and Innovation:  Strengthening U.S. scientific discovery, economic competitiveness, and improving quality of life through innovations in science and technology
4. Environmental Responsibility:  Protecting the environment by providing a responsible resolution to the environmental legacy of nuclear weapons production
5. Management Excellence:  Enabling the mission through sound management

Mission of the DOE China Office – U.S. Embassy, Beijing, China
The U.S. has had a long and fruitful history of engagement with China on energy related cooperation since January, 1979, and the U.S. currently has robust engagement with China through bilateral and multilateral mechanisms.The DOE China Office was established in 2005. Its mission is to facilitate the implementation of DOE’s programs in China by:

1. Strengthening communications among the Department, the Embassy, and the Chinese government;
2. Providing expertise to core constituents at the Embassy and DOE Headquarters, and to visiting delegations;
3. Supporting the travel of Department of Energy and national laboratory travelers; and
4. Facilitating the execution of DOE Programs in China

DOE Cooperation Objectives with China

1. Promote energy security interests between the two largest energy consumers;
2. Increase market opportunities for U.S. companies and technologies;
3. Deploy clean energy technologies;
4. Leverage U.S. science and technology (S&T) investments through mutually beneficial cooperation;
5. Engage China on nuclear nonproliferation policies and practices; and
6. Support U.S. counterterrorism policies.

Programs of the DOE China Office

• DOE engages China in:
• Fossil Energy
• Energy Efficiency
• Renewable Energy
• High Energy Physics
• Fusion
• Energy Policy
• Energy Security
• Nuclear Energy
• Nonproliferation
• Counterterrorism

Cooperation Mechanisms

U.S.-China Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Technologies Agreement (PUNT)
Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Technology Agreement was signed in 1998 between DOE and China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), to reaffirm the 1985 Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (PUNE).  Cooperative activities have been implemented by the China Atomic Energy Authority and DOE.  The cooperation covers nuclear technology and export control, nuclear emergency management and safety, nuclear safeguards and security and high level waste management.  Efforts under the PUNT facilitated the U.S.- Chinese Memorandum of Understanding signed in December 2006 for the export of AP1000 Westinghouse civil nuclear energy technology to China. 

U.S.-China Energy Policy Dialogue (EPD)
United States-China Energy Policy Dialogue was established between DOE and the National Development and Reform Commission in May 2004, to facilitate policy-level bilateral exchanges of views on energy security, economic issues as well as energy technology options.

Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED)
Established by Presidents Bush and Hu in 2006, the SED is a focused and effective framework for addressing economic issues of mutual concern. By prioritizing issues in the broader context of the U.S.-China bilateral economic relationship, the SED gives direction and creates momentum for the many existing bilateral mechanisms used to foster cooperation and resolve concerns across the spectrum of economic issues, including energy supply and demand.

U.S.-China Science and Technology Agreement
Signed in 1979 by President Carter and Premier Deng Xiaoping, the United States -China Agreement on Cooperation in Science and Technology (the S&T Agreement) began an era of robust government-to-government science and technology (S&T) collaboration between the two countries. The Agreement is among the longest-standing U.S.-China accords and has been broadly endorsed by U.S. Federal agencies through their participation in cooperative exchanges. These exchanges have helped advance cooperative research in a diverse range of fields, including fisheries, earth and atmospheric sciences, basic research in physics and chemistry, a variety of energy-related areas, agriculture, civil industrial technology, geology, health, and disaster research.

MOU on the Cooperation and Development of Biofuels
In December 2007, the U.S. Departments of Energy (DOE) and Agriculture (USDA) and China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) signed an MOU to strengthen and expand cooperation on biofuels production and use. This MOU promotes energy security interests between the two countries with the ultimate goal of significantly reducing fossil fuel consumption by increasing the use of clean, renewable fuels such as those derived from biomass. 

To harness each nation’s expertise, this MOU specifically encourages cooperation in biomass and feedstock production and sustainability; conversion technology and engineering; bio-based product development and utilization standards; and rural and agricultural development strategies.  China, the world’s third largest ethanol producer behind the U.S. and Brazil, is the first Asian country to sign a biofuels agreement with the United States to accelerate the development of second generation biofuels.

Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Protocol
This protocol was signed between DOE and the Ministry of Science and Technology in 1995 and renewed by Secretary Samuel Bodman and Minister Xu Guanhua in December 2006. The protocol is focused on cooperation in industrial energy efficiency; energy efficient building technologies; and joint research on biofuels.  Past bilateral energy cooperation has resulted in the demonstration of wind and solar energy systems, training and certification workshops for wind energy technologies, resource assessment training and a renewable energy business workshop.

MOU Concerning Industrial Efficiency Cooperation
DOE and China's National Development Reform Committee (NDRC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in mid-September 2007 to increase cooperation and energy efficiency in China's industrial sector. The MOU followed discussions at the third U.S.-China Energy Policy Dialogue in mid 2007, where the United States and China agreed to conduct industrial audits to increase China's national, regional, and local energy efficiency.

Oil and Gas Industry Forum (OGIF)
This forum was launched in 1998, and serves to facilitate opportunities for government and industry leaders from China and the U.S. to have frank discussions about respective needs in the oil and gas sector.  The Departments of Energy and Commerce are co-hosts of the Forum on the U.S. side, and the National Development and Reform Commission is the Chinese host.  Industry representatives play a very active role in formulating meeting agendas and giving presentations.

Fossil Energy Protocol
This protocol was signed in 2000 and led to China’s participation in the Government Steering Committee of the FutureGen Initiative.  The protocol was renewed in April 2005 and has led to various workshops and cooperation in research and development in coal liquefaction, enhanced oil recovery, and measurements of methane emission from agriculture.                                           

Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism
The Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism was launched by President Bush and President Putin on July 15, 2006 in St. Petersburg, Russia to expand and accelerate the development of partnership capacity to combat the global threat of nuclear terrorism.

On October 30-31, 2006, representatives from the governments of Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Russia, Turkey, the United States, the United Kingdom met in Rabat, Morocco and reached agreement on a Statement of Principles for the Initiative, as well as a Terms of Reference for Implementation and Assessment. The International Atomic Energy Agency has been invited to serve as an observer to the Initiative.

In December 2007, under the GICNT framework, a DOE-led delegation participated in joint U.S.-China workshops in Beijing on international radiation emergency response.

Megaports
The Megaports program serves the economic interests and security interests of the United States by assuring that cargo destined to reach our country is free of nuclear or radiological contamination, to enhance capabilities to deter, detect and interdict illicit shipments of nuclear and other radioactive material by installing specialized radiation detection equipment at international seaports. 

China and the United States signed the Megaports Memorandum of Understanding in November 2005, and negotiations for the implementing arrangements were concluded in June, 2007. Chinese parties are the General Administration of Customs (GACC) and the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine (AQSIQ). The Pilot Project under Megaports is now underway at a large Chinese port facility.

The Megaports program also supports training on detection and interdiction of nuclear and radiological materials for GACC and AQSIQ and other inspection personnel at the DOE Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s HAMMER Facility, and may include site visits to international ports where Megaports is operational.

Chinese partners of the DOE China Office

• Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• National Development and Reform Commission
• Ministry of Science and Technology
• Ministry of Housing and Urban Rural Construction
• China Atomic Energy Authority 
• China Institute of Atomic Energy
• China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations
• Ministry of Environmental Protection, National Nuclear Safety Administration
• National Nuclear Emergency Response Office, COSTEND
• General Administration of China Customs
• General Administration of Quality Supervision and Inspection Control
• Emergency Management Office, State Council
• Ministry of Public Security
• Tsinghua University Research Reactor Facility
• Provincial and Municipal Environmental Protection Bureaus
• China National Nuclear Corporation
• China Institute for Radiation Protection
• Provincial Emergency Management Offices
• Nuclear Power Plant Representatives
• State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation

Awards & Achievements

The Department of Energy has won more Research and Development (R&D) awards than any private sector organization, and twice as many as all other federal agencies combined.  Recent awards include:

• Energy and Water Management Awards
• E. O. Lawrence Awards
• Fermi Awards
• Nobel Prizes
• R&D Magazine 100 Awards
• Science Awards

As the nation's top sponsor of research on promising technologies, the Department is responsible for many key accomplishments in the fields of:

• Alternative Fuel Vehicles
• Basic Energy Science
• Biological and Environmental Research  
• Gene Research & Therapy
• High Efficiency Vehicles
• Industrial Technologies  
• Industrial Materials
• Material Sciences
• Medical Technology 
• Nanoscience
• Renewable Energy
• Science & Technology  
• Transportation Technologies

Leadership