The European Union is planning to ask Chinese businesses to transfer intellectual property (IP) on clean technologies to European firms, in return for subsidies, The Financial Times has reported.
The bloc is planning to impose that demand as part of tougher trade rules targeting Beijing, which will include a requirement for Chinese businesses to have factories in Europe, the FT report said.
The planned rules will apply to batteries but could be expanded to other green sectors, it added.
China is currently the world’s dominant supplier of clean technologies ranging from electric vehicles to solar panels and wind turbines, and the European Union has been uneasy over its dependence on Beijing for that tech.
The bloc expects its demands on IP and European factories, will help protect its market from a “flood” of cheap Chinese imports. The trade requirements also come at a time when concerns are rising about “the ability of companies to meet ambitious climate targets without relying on cheap imports,” the FT noted.
But experts in the report noted that the “trade protection” will still not be enough, as it would not bring down prices for consumers.
Read the full report: The Financial Times
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