ABSTRACT
Markets, experiences and initiatives outside of China have impacted China’s solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind industries in considerable but different ways. Several of the Chinese wind turbine manufacturers made licensing agreements with German, Danish and US firms. The nature of these networks varied, and what type of information that was shared depended on the agreement. The solar PV industry has become a veritable global industry. This, for instance, is evident when looking at the role of the German market in initiating the Chinese solar PV industry, and the increase in Chinese domestic installations of PV panels simultaneously with the cut-back of the German solar PV feed-in tariff. At the end of the nineteenth century, certification became important in the shipping industry as the brutal forces of nature made insurance critical for ship owners to increase safety by setting standards and implementing surveillance, and to reduce risks by making correct and detailed assessments.
