Foreign Ministry website reported on May 1 that on April 28, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of ambassador-level diplomatic relations between China and the UK, the first "China-UK Hydrogen Energy Cooperation Forum" was held in Manchester . The forum was hosted by the Consulate General in Manchester, the British Council for China Affairs, and the Greater Manchester UK-China Association, and hosted by Wuhan University of Technology and Manchester City University . The Hubei Provincial Foreign Office, Wuhan Municipal Foreign Office, Tsinghua University Strategic and Security Research Center China Forum and the British Consulate General in Wuhan participated in the preparations. The opening ceremony of the forum was co-chaired by Fan Haohong, Chairman of the British Committee for China and Zhang Xiaomei, Director of the Hubei Provincial Foreign Affairs Office, through video links. Ambassador to the UK Zheng Zeguang, Consul General to Manchester Zheng Xiyuan and Vice Governor of Hubei Province Zhao Haishan, Deputy Mayor of Wuhan Dang Zhen, President of Wuhan University of Technology Yang Zongkai , President of Bank of China London Branch Fang Wenjian, British Trade Representative to China Wu Qiaowen, British Consul General to Wuhan Ho Jiakai, Greater Manchester Deputy County Magistrate Yang Juwen, Manchester City Speaker Crieg, and Manchester UK-China Association Chairman Pang Dawei attended the event.
Ambassador Zheng Zeguang delivered an important speech entitled "Strengthening green hydrogen energy cooperation and creating new highlights of Sino-UK cooperation". He said that the forum is timely and is not only an important action for implementing the Chinese and British leaders on strengthening green development cooperation, but also a pragmatic measure for cooperation between Wuhan and Manchester City. It is of great significance to help China-UK relations release new vitality at a new starting point and respond to global climate change. China and the UK have their own advantages in the field of hydrogen energy, strong willingness to cooperate and huge potential. China is willing to work with the UK to support pragmatic cooperation in various fields such as green hydrogen energy in the two countries, promote bilateral relations to move forward steadily on the correct track of dialogue and cooperation, benefit the people of both countries more and make more contributions to responding to global climate change.
The former Consul General of Zheng Xi said that Wuhan is the birthplace of modern Chinese industry, and Manchester is the cradle of British industry. The "China-British Hydrogen Energy Cooperation Forum" is based on the friendly city relations between Wuhan and Manchester, aims to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries on strengthening new energy cooperation. It is also to implement the important instructions put forward by President Xi Jinping when he visited Manchester in 2015, "I hope Manchester will actively serve as the leader in China-British relations and the navigator of China-British cooperation." Wuhan and Manchester play an important role in the economic development of the two countries. Both sides should further tap their potential, create new highlights of mutually beneficial cooperation, and help the world's green and low-carbon development.
Deputy County Magistrate Yang Juwen of Greater Manchester was excited for Manchester and Wuhan, Manchester City University and Wuhan University of Technology to launch hydrogen energy cooperation, and said, "This is a meeting on friendship, cooperation, innovation, and development." Wu Qiaowen, the British Trade Representative to China, said that "the commercial benefits created by Sino-British hydrogen energy cooperation will be huge", and hopes that the two countries will carry out further cooperation in hydrogen energy production, storage and transportation. Manchester City Speaker Krieg looks forward to the two cities starting bilateral dialogue through this event, helping China and the UK achieve their respective hydrogen energy development goals and working together to deal with global climate warming .
Hubei Vice Governor Zhao Haishan and Wuhan Vice Mayor Dang Zhen respectively introduced the relevant situation of China and Wuhan in the field of hydrogen energy development, and expressed their willingness to work with Manchester to promote various exchanges between the two sides in the field of hydrogen energy, so as to achieve complementary advantages and win-win cooperation. President Yang Zongkai and other scientific research and corporate institutions expressed their willingness to work with the UK to contribute to promoting Sino-British hydrogen energy cooperation, and serve the national new energy development strategy and the "dual carbon" goal as scheduled.
The "China-UK Hydrogen Energy Cooperation Forum" lasted for two days had 500 people participating online and offline. At the opening ceremony on the 28th, Wuhan and Manchester signed a memorandum of exchanges and cooperation in the hydrogen energy industry, and Wuhan University of Technology and Manchester City University signed a letter of intent for hydrogen energy cooperation. The meeting was held on the 29th by Manchester City University and Wuhan University of Technology through a link, and representatives from relevant Chinese and British government departments, hydrogen energy academic circles, science and technology circles, and business circles held dialogues on cooperation in the hydrogen energy industry. All parties at the meeting agreed that China-UK hydrogen energy cooperation is a pragmatic attempt for the future, and hope that the green cooperation between the two countries can bear fruit as soon as possible.People's Daily, Xinhua News Agency , CCTV, China Daily, etc. interviewed the forum.
