Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) countries are at a pivotal crossroads in their pursuit of sustainable development. Virtually all LAC countries have pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions and achieve net-zero carbon by midcentury. Yet turning climate pledges into reality requires massive investment and technological support — areas where these nations face shortfalls. Decades of dependence on commodity exports and fossil fuels have left many LAC economies struggling to finance a green transformation. Upgrading energy infrastructure, building renewable power capacity, electrifying transport, and conserving critical ecosystems all demand capital and state-of-the-art technology on an unprecedented scale.
The 33 countries of LAC form an integral part of the “Global South” — a grouping in which China also positions itself — and share many development aspirations. Regional leaders are pursuing green reindustrialization, renewable energy expansion and climate resilience as pathways to address economic inequality and environmental vulnerability. This is where China’s role becomes pivotal, stepping in with the funding and know-how to bridge the gap between vision and implementation.
Over the last few years, a clear shift has occurred in the nature of Chinese investment. Chinese capital in 2022 and 2023 rebounded and pivoted toward renewable energy projects and clean-technology industries. Many of these new investments are led not by giant State-owned enterprises alone, but by China’s private sector champions in clean tech. Companies like BYD and Great Wall Motors are making inroads in Latin America, expanding the green footprint beyond traditional big infrastructure deals.
Concrete examples of this green push abound. In Argentina’s sunny Jujuy province, financing from the China Development Bank helped build Latin America’s largest solar power plant, a sprawling 300-megawatt array that now lights up hundreds of thousands of homes. In Chile, Chinese support has funded the Punta Sierra wind farm in Coquimbo, harnessing the Pacific breeze to feed clean power into the grid. In northeast Brazil, a massive 180 MW wind farm in Bahia — built by Chinese company CGN Brazil Energy — began operation in 2023, generating an estimated 720 million kilowatt-hours annually and creating over 1,000 local jobs in the process. These projects are more than sporadic investments; they represent a growing mosaic of Chinese-backed renewable-energy infrastructure.
Beyond power generation, China is also wiring Latin America for the green transition. State Grid Corp of China, one of the world’s largest utilities, has invested heavily in Brazilian power transmission lines to connect remote hydro dams and wind farms with urban centers. This helps resolve a critical bottleneck: Many Latin nations have ample renewable resources but lack the grid infrastructure to deliver that energy where it’s needed. Chinese companies are stepping in to build that connective tissue. In public transportation, Chinese electric buses now glide through the streets of cities like Santiago and Bogota, providing cleaner options for commuters as local authorities seek to slash pollution. Each electric bus or solar panel that arrives deepens China’s imprint on Latin America’s sustainability landscape.
Complementary strengths and mutual benefits
The accelerating green partnership between China and Latin America is underpinned by fundamentally complementary needs. Latin America requires large-scale funding, infrastructure upgrades and affordable technology to fuel its green transition. China has exactly those resources in abundance — along with a strategic interest in exporting its green development model. In other words, Latin America’s demand and China’s supply are a natural match.
Consider renewable-energy technology. Over years of development, China has become a world leader in solar panels, wind turbines and battery storage. Chinese manufacturers drove down the cost of solar modules by more than 80 percent in the past decade, making solar power far more accessible globally. Latin America, blessed with intense sunlight and strong winds, stands to gain enormously from these cheaper technologies. By importing Chinese solar panels or partnering with Chinese firms to build wind farms, countries like Chile, Mexico and Brazil are rapidly expanding their clean energy capacity. Chinese expertise — from ultrahigh-voltage grid design to electric bus manufacturing — is helping Latin American cities and utilities leapfrog toward modern, low-carbon systems. This tech transfer is often bundled with financing from China’s development banks or commercial lenders, creating a one-stop solution for Latin American governments looking to implement green projects quickly.
In fact, the collaboration between China and Latin America on green development stands as a hopeful model — one in which shared challenges beget shared solutions, and on which the road to a sustainable future is traveled faster because we travel it together
Crucially, the benefits flow both ways. Latin America gains infrastructure and progress toward climate goals, while China earns goodwill, market access, and a role in shaping the future of the global green economy. Investments in Latin American sustainability also help China address its own priorities. For example, by funding renewable energy abroad, China can create overseas demand for its green industries (which supports jobs back home) and secure long-term contracts for commodities needed in clean tech (like lithium for batteries). The “shared vision of sustainable development” and “mutual benefits” at the heart of China-LAC green cooperation is not just rhetoric — Latin America gets green growth, and China gets strategic partnerships and business opportunities.
There is also a strong social and human dimension to these projects. Latin American leaders are keen that the green transition also be a just transition — one that creates jobs, reduces inequality, and respects local communities. Here, too, China’s role can be positive. Many Chinese renewable projects have brought employment and training to local residents, as seen with the Bahia wind farm’s 1,000 jobs in Brazil. And by contributing to cleaner air and water, these collaborations directly improve quality of life. To maximize mutual gains, Latin American governments are encouraging Chinese investors to form joint ventures, use local suppliers, and transfer skills. When managed well, China’s green investments can thus become a catalyst for Latin America’s broader sustainable development, aligned with the region’s goals of inclusive growth.
Challenges to a greener partnership
Despite the promising alignment, China’s burgeoning role in Latin America’s green transition is not without challenges. One major hurdle is navigating the regulatory and political complexities across diverse Latin American nations. Each country has its own legal framework, approval process, and standards for environmental and social safeguards. Chinese companies have sometimes struggled to adapt to these local requirements. Projects can be delayed or derailed by permitting issues, community protests, or shifts in government.
There is also the challenge of aligning priorities. While both sides want sustainable development, Latin American governments often emphasize that it must directly benefit local populations. As noted, reducing inequality is a key concern; green projects are expected to create jobs and social value, not just generate electrons or extract minerals. Building trust through local partnerships, hiring and training local workers and engaging transparently with communities is essential. Encouragingly, the awareness of this need is growing. The report on China-LAC green cooperation stresses the importance of “localization of green practices by Chinese firms” — essentially urging companies to adapt to local contexts and share benefits broadly. Some Chinese investors are currently pursuing joint ventures with Latin companies or source components locally to meet the host country’s expectations.
Another consideration is environmental and financial sustainability. Latin America has hard-learned lessons about the pitfalls of resource investment booms, and some fear a green boom could repeat past mistakes if not managed well. Care must be taken to ensure renewable energy projects truly deliver on emissions reductions and do not inadvertently harm sensitive ecosystems. For example, large hydro dams can flood forests or displace communities if not carefully planned. Moreover, the financing model matters — loans should be structured so that countries do not fall into unsustainable debt for the sake of green projects. Here China has an opportunity to innovate with instruments like green bonds or partnerships with multilateral banks to spread risk. So far, many Latin American leaders remain optimistic that these issues are manageable with open communication.
A sustainable future forged together
As the world races to curb carbon emissions and avert climate catastrophe, the green transformation of Latin America and the Caribbean has become a matter of global significance. In this endeavor, China’s role has emerged as both impactful and indispensable. Through sizeable investments, technology transfer and a shared vision of progress, China is helping to unlock Latin America’s tremendous sustainable development potential. From the windswept plateaus of Argentina to the tropical sun of the Caribbean, solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicles financed by Chinese partnerships are accelerating the region’s shift to a low-carbon economy. Crucially, this is happening in a way that aligns with Latin American aspirations — creating jobs, upgrading industries and fostering inclusive growth.
Looking ahead, the promise of the China-LAC green alliance is bright. Both sides are doubling down on climate action: China has committed to peak its carbon emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060, while Latin American nations are pushing forward with renewable-energy expansions and nature-based climate solutions. Their partnership can be a powerful engine driving these commitments from paper to practice.
Of course, realizing it will require continued effort, mutual understanding and adherence to high standards. China’s experience at home — building the world’s largest solar and wind fleets, rolling out millions of electric vehicles, and lifting hundreds of millions out of poverty — offers valuable lessons for Latin American countries charting their own paths to sustainable prosperity. By applying those lessons in a tailored way, Latin America can leapfrog toward a green economy faster than would be possible alone. Indeed, the true significance of China’s role in Latin America’s green transition lies not just in kilowatts or dollars invested, but in the precedent it sets for international cooperation. It shows that through partnership, a developing region can harness support from a fellow developing giant to transform itself in line with global climate goals. In fact, the collaboration between China and Latin America on green development stands as a hopeful model — one in which shared challenges beget shared solutions, and on which the road to a sustainable future is traveled faster because we travel it together.
The author is director of research at the Institute of Innovative and High-Quality Development (Hong Kong).
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
