China’s 2024 Energy Law: an integrated approach to energy security

Abstract This Article examines China’s 2024 Energy Law through four dimensions of energy security: availability, accessibility, affordability, and acceptability. As China’s first comprehensive energy legislation, the law establishes an integrated legal framework that coordinates previously fragmented sector-specific regulations, addressing contemporary challenges of climate change and energy security. The analysis reveals how the law establishes market-oriented reforms while maintaining necessary regulatory oversight, particularly through its pricing mechanisms and anti-monopoly provisions. The legislation advances China’s transition to clean energy by incorporating carbon neutrality objectives, establishing Green Electricity Certificate systems, and mandating cleaner use of fossil fuels, while simultaneously protecting consumer interests through price controls and service guarantees. Through detailed examination of key provisions addressing each dimension of energy security, this Article demonstrates how the law balances multiple objectives: promoting market liberalization while maintaining state oversight, advancing decarbonization while ensuring energy security, and encouraging technological innovation while protecting consumer interests. As both the world’s largest energy consumer and a leading renewable energy producer, China’s regulatory approach provides a blueprint for a systematic transformation of its energy sector, while maintaining stable and affordable energy supplies.