By Jasper (Shaojie) Shen, New Energy Nexus China

Group shot of our delegation at Shanghai Climate Week 2026.

Shanghai Climate Week 2026 was a pivotal moment for regional collaboration, and New Energy Nexus China played a major role this year. We hosted around 40 members of international delegations from Thailand, Pakistan, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea, and Japan, and supported a wide range of coordination work.

Looking back now, it’s interesting to remember that this project actually started as a very small idea in mid-March, seeded during conversations with our partners in Thailand (JUTI) and Pakistan (Renewables First).

Both organizations had a strong interest off the bat. They wanted to bring together think tanks, government representatives, and business leaders to better understand China’s energy transition practices.

As preparations moved forward, the delegation lists kept growing. Even one week before the event started, we were still receiving emails asking, “Can we still add one more person?” or “Is it still possible for me to join?” Eventually, many sessions filled up, and we had to close registration.

That process made one thing very clear: the level of curiosity around China’s clean energy transition is high, and growing.

As Leo Horn-Phathanothai, CEO of JUTI, said: “No doubt that China has shown a welcoming attitude and an openness to doing business with the world.”

At the same time, however, I could still feel that there are bottlenecks in cross-border collaboration. One of the barriers I observed was trust, which isn’t solved by new tech or market research but by transparent communication and cooperation.

In many ways, Shanghai Climate Week felt like a process of building trust across different countries and different contexts. Across multiple events we co-hosted and participated in, I’ve noted these insights:

Meaningful conversations bring significant value.

One of my strongest observations was that simply getting people from different countries to sit together and talk meaningfully is already extremely valuable.

During our visit to Suzhou Industrial Park, we organized a closed-door dialogue on low-carbon industrial parks. Representatives from Indonesia’s Ministry of Industry, Siam Cement Group (Thailand), Renewables First (Pakistan), SIP Urban Development Research Institute, and GCL Energy Technology shared perspectives on how different countries are approaching industrial decarbonization.

What made this different was not formal presentations, but real exchange. Conversations quickly moved into grounded questions:

• What is the most practical challenge in your country right now?
• Why does this work in China?
• Would it translate to Southeast Asia?
• Who carries the financing risk?

One of the sessions at Shanghai Climate Week 2026.

Countries can accidentally inspire each other.

This was something we did not anticipate at the beginning.

For example, members of the Pakistan delegation shared how the country has experienced a massive rooftop solar boom in recent years. Many households and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have started purchasing and installing solar systems independently due to concerns about electricity prices and power reliability.

This kind of bottom-up renewable energy demand was very surprising and impressive to the Thailand delegation. Some Thai partners specifically told me that it made them start thinking about whether Thailand could cultivate a similar grassroots-level driving force.

These kinds of sparks are very difficult to generate solely through reports.

Different stakeholders come looking for different things.

Delegation members also arrived with very different priorities. Policy and think tank representatives focused on how China’s systems actually function on the ground. One company in Suzhou, Zooming New Energy, shared a candid view: while policy support matters, long-term success still depends on market demand and customer-driven logic.

Meanwhile, business participants prioritized partnerships. To support this, we organized seven one-on-one matchmaking sessions with companies including Sungrow, Windey International, Tecloman Energy Storage, and WHES Energy Storage Systems.

The key insight: information creates awareness, but collaboration creates engagement.

Trust is also built in quieter ways.

Running multinational events like this is demanding, but it’s often the small details that shape trust and can’t be neglected.

AI translation tools made cross-language discussions seamless for many visitors. Halal meals and dietary accommodations ensured inclusivity. Even informal moments, such as shared meals or cultural exchanges, shaped participants’ experiences throughout the week.

These efforts may seem minor, but they leave strong, lasting impressions.

One of the sessions at Shanghai Climate Week 2026.

Overall, facilitating these exchanges reinforced the fact that the energy transition will depend as much on relationships as it does on technology. NEX China hopes to be one of the partners helping build it. Whether you’re interested in supporting our work or you’re a startup looking for pathways to scale, learn more about our programs at newenergynexus.cn.

Jasper (Shaojie) Shen is the Director of Strategy and Market Partnerships at New Energy Nexus China.

Group shot of New Energy Nexus and the delegations participating in Shanghai Climate Week 2026.

China’s clean energy transition is accelerating at a scale few countries have achieved before. In 2025 alone, the country added more than 430 GW of new wind and solar capacity, pushing renewables to over 60% of its total installed power generation capacity.

But the significance of that progress extends far beyond China itself. As climate pressures intensify across Asia, the technologies, financing models, and industry expertise emerging from China’s transition could play a major role in accelerating clean energy adoption across the region and beyond.

That urgency shaped Shanghai Climate Week 2026, where New Energy Nexus (NEX) China organized six energy transition events under the banner ‘NEXT DECADE:’ convening delegates, companies, policymakers, and ecosystem builders from across Asia to explore how deeper regional collaboration can accelerate the transition in the immediate future.

A delegation of 40 representatives from Thailand, Pakistan and Indonesia joined in the events, led by the Just Transition Initiative (JUTI), with whom we partnered for Bangkok Climate Action Week, and Renewables First, which enables our work with entrepreneurs in Pakistan.

Here are some of the biggest insights that emerged from the week:

Collaboration is key to a faster energy transition

One theme surfaced repeatedly across nearly every event: technology is advancing faster than the mechanisms for cross-border collaboration.

At the Power Up! Shanghai Evening reception (April 21), delegates from Thailand, Indonesia, and Pakistan spoke directly with Chinese companies, including LONGi Green Energy and Jinko Solar, about opportunities to expand renewable energy deployment across Asia. The discussions were practical, focusing on financing, market access, implementation challenges, and local adaptation rather than broad climate ambition alone.

Delegates consistently highlighted growing interest from Chinese companies in working more closely with markets across Southeast and South Asia. Many also expressed optimism about concrete next steps following the week’s exchanges, particularly around technology deployment, industrial cooperation, and future business partnerships.

“China’s role in the Global South’s energy transition is moving from being a technology supplier to shaping the foundations of the next energy economy,” said Zeeshan Ashfaq, CEO at Renewables First. “This is becoming urgent as demand for energy storage accelerates and begins to define how far distributed, solar-led systems can actually scale, with Pakistan now moving from a solar rush into an emerging battery rush.”

Muhammad Basit Ghauri, Special Initiatives Manager at Renewables First, speaks at a panel.

Our takeaway: The appetite for collaboration already exists. What is needed now are stronger platforms, trusted interlocutors, strong collaborative networks, and sustained engagement to turn conversations into concrete collaboration.

China’s energy transition experience is becoming globally relevant

The Green Practices in Suzhou exchange (April 22) offered international delegates a closer look at how China is implementing green transformation at the city and industrial park level.

The delegates explored distributed renewable energy systems, zero-carbon industrial parks, and integrated planning models alongside Chinese industry leaders and researchers. What stood out was not only the scale of China’s implementation, but how rapidly lessons from those projects could apply elsewhere in Asia.

Delegates were particularly interested in how Chinese companies combine policy coordination, industrial strategy, and infrastructure to accelerate adoption. The discussions also surfaced growing opportunities for joint pilot projects and localized partnerships in Southeast and South Asia.

China’s experience driving industrial decarbonization as a business strategy, with cost savings, operational efficiency, resilience and innovation at its heart, resonated with participants from other countries.

Our takeaway: China’s role in the transition is evolving from manufacturer to ecosystem partner, with an impact that transcends geographical boundaries.

Distributed renewable energy is becoming central to resilience

At the forum on distributed renewable energy cooperation in Suzhou, discussions focused heavily on resilience, particularly in rapidly growing economies vulnerable to climate and grid instability.

Speakers from China, Thailand, Pakistan, and across Southeast Asia emphasized that distributed energy systems are no longer niche technologies. They are increasingly becoming core infrastructure for climate adaptation, energy access, and economic resilience.

Conversations across Southeast Asia highlighted growing interest in adapting China’s experience with distributed renewable energy to local contexts, particularly in areas where centralized infrastructure remains limited or vulnerable.

Leo Horn-Phathanothai, CEO of JUTI, speaks at a panel.

Our takeaway: Energy resilience is now inseparable from energy transition planning.

Climate finance needs stronger regional coordination

Across multiple forums, from the insurance-focused Chinese Technology, Global Capital, Insuring a Greener Future session to the Turning Green into Gold dialogue, one issue repeatedly surfaced: financing structures still lag behind climate innovation.

Participants discussed how insurance systems, green finance, blended capital, and standardized investment frameworks will be essential for scaling infrastructure and emerging technologies across Asia.

The conversations also reflected a broader shift in mindset. Climate finance is increasingly viewed not only as risk mitigation, but also as a tool for industrial transformation and regional cooperation.

Delegates from Southeast Asia noted strong interest in building financial partnerships that connect local market demand with Chinese manufacturing and technology capacity.

Our takeaway: Accelerating the energy transition will require financial systems that move as quickly and collaboratively as the technologies themselves.

AI and intelligent manufacturing are reshaping the transition

Several events highlighted how AI and intelligent systems are becoming deeply integrated into the clean energy economy.

At the Green Engine Accelerator 2026 launch and the Climate Lighthouse Forum on intelligent manufacturing, startups and industry leaders showcased solutions spanning AI-powered energy systems, CCUS, green fuels, hydrogen, and advanced manufacturing.

The conversations reflected a growing convergence between digital infrastructure and clean energy infrastructure. Rather than operating as separate industries, participants increasingly framed AI, automation, and energy systems as interconnected drivers of industrial decarbonization.

For many international delegates, this also reinforced China’s growing role in manufacturing clean energy hardware while increasingly shaping next-generation energy ecosystems.

Jie Xiao, General Manager of New Energy Nexus China, speaks during one of the events.

Our takeaway: The convergence of AI, digital infrastructure, and clean energy is now becoming a defining force in how industrial decarbonization will scale across Asia and beyond.

Cities are emerging as climate collaboration hubs

One of the strongest signals from the week came from the discussions around city-led climate cooperation.

At the Climate Week Seasons Connect+ and the Opening Ceremony Roundtable closed-door meetings, leaders connected initiatives from Shanghai, Bangkok, London, and other cities to explore how local climate action platforms can drive global collaboration.

The emphasis throughout these sessions was pragmatic: cities can often move faster than national systems, especially when it comes to piloting solutions, convening industries, and building partnerships.

Our takeaway: These discussions reinforce the importance of regional climate ecosystems that connect entrepreneurs, corporates, governments, and investors across borders rather than operating in isolation.

What comes next

Shanghai Climate Week 2026 showed that Asia’s clean energy transition is entering a new phase. The technologies exist. Manufacturing capacity exists. Capital and policy momentum are growing. The challenge now is building the connective tissue that allows innovation, investment, and implementation to move faster across markets.

That is where New Energy Nexus China continues to play a critical role.

For nearly a decade, NEX China has been running accelerator programs, facilitating matchmaking between founders and funders, and building strong relationships both within and outside the country.

Shanghai Climate Week was never meant to be a one-off exchange, but part of a longer effort to build sustained regional collaboration platforms across Asia’s energy transition ecosystem. In the months ahead, NEX China will continue advancing these connections through regional initiatives, including the Intelligent Manufacturing Expo Southeast Asia 2026 and Bangkok Climate Action Week 2026, where many of the conversations started in Shanghai are expected to evolve into deeper partnerships and concrete projects.

Learn more about our programs in China at newenergynexus.cn.

Mama Eveline Lakot, member of the Binen Farmers Group in Amuru District, Northern Uganda.

Farmers feed Uganda, but the balance is shifting fast. Crop production has grown only about 2% annually, while population growth has outpaced it at 3.3%, widening the gap in food security. At the same time, nearly 90% of farmers still depend on manual labor to work their land.

For farming communities in Northern Uganda, these national pressures are felt daily through failed harvests and unstable incomes. Prolonged dry spells repeatedly destroyed vegetable crops, disrupting household earnings and making it difficult for families to consistently pay school fees or meet basic needs.

For Chairperson Apio Josephine and her 80-member Atek Ki Lwak Farmers Group, the constraint was not effort or land, but the sun and water, the very elements meant to sustain their crops.

“When we plant in February or March, by April, when our vegetables have grown properly, the sun comes and destroys them,” Josephine said. “In the time of harvest, we get only half of what we were supposed to get.”

Their fortunes began to shift when the group joined New Energy Nexus Uganda’s Productive Use of Renewable Energy (PURE) program.

Apio Josephine, Atek Ki Lwak Farmers Group chairperson, waters her cabbage farm using solar-powered pumps.

Working with farmers to find solutions

The PURE program helps agricultural cooperatives access solar-powered irrigation equipment through affordable financing. Alongside the equipment, farmers receive training in agronomy, business management, and cooperative savings models.

“A farmer does not earn income monthly, and that is why a different repayment model must be created for them to facilitate fair repayments,” said Joy Musiimenta, Project Officer at New Energy Nexus Uganda, in an interview with The Independent Uganda.

“With our model, a farmer can have time to produce, sell, and then repay the loan in quarterly installments.”

Joy Musiimenta, Project Officer at New Energy Nexus Uganda, greets members of the Atek Ki Lwak Farmers Group.

Together, this integrated approach helps farmers shift from reacting to the weather to planning production cycles, managing cash flow, and building resilience against climate variability.

Most participating groups also operate under the Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) model, in which members pool savings, access internal credit, and reduce dependence on external lenders. This strengthens financial resilience at the community level.

Since joining the program last year, Josephine and the Atek Ki Lwak Farmers Group now cultivate three acres of vegetables and expect to earn over UGX 3 million (US$807). With stronger relationships among members and improved yields, they are preparing to expand to seven acres next season.

“Unlike those days when the sun used to disturb us, now when the sun comes, we have our solar water pump… and we irrigate sufficiently for our crops,” Josephine said of their new equipment.

The impact is not limited to one group. In Lakang Village in Amuru District, about 100 kilometers from Nwoya, the Binen Farmers Group is experiencing similar shifts in how they farm and what they can produce.

Mama Eveline Lakot, member of the Binen Farmers Group, holds tomatoes she grew in her farm with the help of solar-powered irrigation.

The results

The Binen Farmers Group faced the same challenge on a larger scale. With 102 members, farming was once limited to small plots because water had to be carried manually, and dry seasons routinely destroyed crops.

“We used to fetch water from wells and carry it on our heads… we could only plant in a very small place,” said Mama Eveline Lakot, Member, Binen Farmers Group

The PURE program’s combination of energy access and financial coordination has shifted how farmers operate. Members now save together, borrow from group funds, and reinvest in tools and inputs that expand production.

Some, like Nyeko Micheal, have expanded their planting capacity.

“I used to plant a quarter- or a half-acre. But when I received this solar water pump… I now plant one or 2 acres,” Micheal said.

Others, like Achaa Magarete Oum, have used group savings to acquire individual pumps and scale their own farms independently.

“Now my capacity to grow has increased… I have planted 3 acres of eggplant, cabbage, and tomatoes,” said Oum

What was once largely subsistence farming is increasingly becoming coordinated, income-generating production for Oum, Micheal, and the wider group.

Nyeko Micheal, member of the Binen Farmer Groups, inspects a solar panel used to power their water pumps.

From survival to resilience

With year-round irrigation, farmers are no longer limited by seasons.

And when their production increases, their families experience immediate, positive changes. School fees are more consistently paid. Food security is improving. Families are investing in better housing and planning for the future, not merely worrying about the next harvest.

The PURE program shows what becomes possible when clean energy is designed for real economic use. By equipping farmer groups with solar irrigation systems, training, and financing pathways, New Energy Nexus Uganda is helping turn climate vulnerability into agricultural resilience.

Whether you’re in a farmers’ group looking for support in Uganda or an investor interested in backing this program, learn more about it here.

Australia imports roughly 90 percent of its liquid fuels. Every global shock—a war, an OPEC decision, a freight disruption—lands directly on businesses, families, and supply chains with almost no buffer. When diesel prices surge, freight operators park their trucks. When supply chains buckle, the cost flows through to everything.

The clean energy transition is the long-term answer to that vulnerability. But it only works if we get the full picture right—and right now, we’re missing a critical piece: batteries. Who makes them, what goes into them, and whether any of that happens domestically.

That question is at the heart of the Supercharge Australia Incubator, a joint initiative of New Energy Nexus and EnergyLab, and the nine startups joining its second cohort.

These companies are tackling the full lithium battery value chain—the materials that go in, the chemistry that makes them safer and longer-lasting, the systems that track health across an entire lifecycle, the infrastructure that lets EVs feed power back into the grid, and the manufacturing capability that keeps more of this value onshore. They come from New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia, and South Australia. They span deep materials science and accessible consumer hardware. What they share is a conviction that Australia has the talent, the resources, and the urgency to lead.

The second Supercharge Australia Incubator cohort during the program’s kickoff call.

Over 12 weeks, each startup in the incubator receives hands-on mentorship, strategic guidance, and introductions to the partners and investors who can help them scale. The program is designed to move early-stage founders past the prototype phase and toward commercial traction.

That support matters more than ever right now. Ben Hutt, Managing Director and CEO of Janus Electric—an EnergyLab alumnus and a supporter of the second Supercharge Australia Innovation Challenge—offers a clear view of how the landscape has shifted.

“The early frenzy of activity in climate tech has ended. This has led to a scarcity of venture capital— the spray and pray is over—and made it harder for early-stage companies to raise money and scale to a point where they have a relevant place in the market.”

The startups that will break through are those that can demonstrate real-world traction, not just promising technology. That’s precisely the gap programs like this one are designed to close.

Cosmos Infinity (NSW) is working at one of the hardest frontiers in battery chemistry. Founded by Paul Chien, the company is developing next-generation solid-state LFP batteries engineered for significantly enhanced safety, longer cycle life, and cost-effective energy storage applications.

DELECTRO (NSW) is making the case that decarbonization doesn’t have to mean compromise. Founder Kartikeya Acharya designs low-carbon products with genuine aesthetic appeal—including the DELOCA micro-kitchenette—proving that the shift to clean energy is something people can actually want to live with.

DYNOVY (NSW) is tackling a problem that grows more urgent with every battery: how do you know its condition, and whether it’s safe to reuse? Mark Behi’s platform technology delivers fast, reliable battery health assessments across an entire lifecycle—from production through to second life and recycling.

HASAKI Research & Technology Centre (VIC) is addressing one of the less visible but most consequential challenges in electric vehicles. Founders Andrew Royale and Keiko Araki are developing a new thermal management secondary system for EVs—targeting the heat management failures that quietly erode battery performance and longevity.

IonMatrix Energy (NSW) is advancing the materials that go into next-generation batteries. Founder Hao Tian is developing battery materials and technologies engineered for safe, high-performance energy storage—with a clear path from laboratory discovery to commercial deployment.

Photo from RENOZ Energy

Ixium Technologies (NSW) is going upstream. Co-founders Jonathan Goodman and Richard Ellison have built modular lithium purification systems that produce battery-grade lithium carbonate at half the cost and a third of the emissions of conventional refining. Given that lithium carbonate sits at the heart of battery supply chains, breakthroughs in its production can unlock lower costs and faster scale across the entire energy transition.

Mercier Designs (NSW) is solving a practical problem for everyday EV users. Founder Tony Mercier has developed a deployable, exchangeable battery swap system—giving flexible energy access to people and fleets who cannot afford downtime and cannot wait for charging.

RENOZ Energy (WA) is closing the gap between the residential and utility energy storage space. Founded by Simon Chan in Perth, RENOZ is developing bespoke batteries en masse across the commercial, agricultural, regional, and resources sectors.

V3G (SA) wants vehicle-to-grid technology to be affordable for everyone, not just early adopters. Founders Mark Purcell and Ewan Parsons have developed V3G Bi-directional Pedestals designed to make V2G accessible at scale—turning every parked EV into a potential grid asset.

Australia is at an inflection point: demand for batteries is rising, global supply chains remain uncertain, and the policy environment is beginning to catch up.

The gap between here and where we need to be is also, increasingly, a policy choice.

“[California, the UK, Canada, and New Zealand]…have all clearly signposted that freight electrification and decarbonisation is the biggest priority between now and 2030—and they’re backing that with subsidies. California subsidises 80 percent of the cost of electrifying a truck.” Hutt said. “Janus is a beneficiary of that. Australia needs to take note of what’s happening overseas.”

The startups in this cohort aren’t waiting for that signal. They are building the technology and the value chain that makes it possible—so that when it comes, Australia is ready. Get in touch if you want to partner with us or find out more: kirk.macdonald@newenergynexus.com

Supercharge Australia is a joint initiative of New Energy Nexus and EnergyLab, accelerating Australia’s lithium battery value chain and catalysing sovereign capability—from critical minerals to manufacturing, deployment, second life, and recycling. To learn more about the Supercharge Australia Incubator, visit the EnergyLab website.