Report: China’s green technology market worth big bucks

Everything about China is big.

The world’s most populous nation has a big economy, big problems and big goals. While China faces a daunting slate of environmental challenges, such as 20 percent of the world’s green house gas emissions, they also may have the most to gain from the environmental movement.

A new report by the China Greentech Initiative shows there could be up to $1 trillion annually in the country’s green tech market already by 2013 under the right conditions.

The study highlights 300 green opportunities, such as markets for renewable energy, cleaner industry, cleaner transportation and cleaner water. The China Greentech Report 2009 was conducted by a group of business people and experts. It was just released Thursday.

The report says China will become one of the largest markets for green technologies, but “What is less certain is the degree to which China will become the center of greentech innovation,” according to the report.

China’s strong suit has long been its ability to manufacture existing technology at low costs, and it hasn’t historically been an innovator when it comes to new technology. This could be China’s chance to change that.

“The Initiative believes that the jury is still out in this case, and would not discount the real possibility that China emerges as an innovator in many greentech markets within the next several years,” the report says.

The U.S. and other developed nations will obviously compete for the wealth of business that is now unfolding out of China’s green movement. But in terms of competing for Chinese market share, China should prove to be a formidable opponent.

China has around 18 million people migrating from rural areas to the cities each year, and by midcentury the report projects 200 cities will have more than 1 million people each.

U.S. companies would be wise to invest in China, which is in the process of adopting environmental policies to curb its stunning growth.