Beijing, China: Johnson Controls has announced participating in the 2016 U.S.-China Climate Smart/Low-Carbon Cities Summit, which highlights the solutions to reduce energy consumption in new and retrofit buildings. This year’s Summit, the statement said, brought Yang Jiechi, State Counsellor of China, and John Kerry, US Secretary of State, together with United States’ and China’s state and local governments and private sector and civil society leaders to discuss optimised energy usage, air quality and accelerating the development of low-carbon cities in China and the United States.

The statement informed that multiple memorandums of understanding (MoU) to address low-carbon solutions and best practice sharing were signed by the United States and China leaders, including an MoU signed by Trent Nevill, President (Asia Pacific) of Johnson Controls, on behalf of the U.S.-China Energy Cooperation Program (ECP).

Johnson Controls said that it is focused on efforts to improve energy efficiency and address China’s climate problems. Elaborating further, the company said that from a district level, Johnson Controls’ expertise uses industrial energy, such as waste heat recovery, to increase capacity for low-carbon District Energy systems.

Johnson Controls said that it also provides building solutions and consulting expertise to its customers to help meet energy reduction targets and achieve prestigious Green Building accreditations. Citing an example, the company highlighted that the Northstar Delta Office Tower in Changsha City, an 850,000-square foot office that cut energy consumption by 28%, was awarded LEED Gold and China Green Building certifications. The company’s second global headquarters in Shanghai, it informed, is expected to deliver 44% energy savings, 42% water savings and 21% embodied energy in materials savings, when it will open in April 2017. It is designed for LEED Platinum and China Three-Star certifications, and was recently awarded the first design-phase EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiency) Certification for an office building in China, added the company.

“Buildings are responsible for up to a third of greenhouse gas emissions globally, and Chinese cities are expected to contribute nearly 40% of global growth in residential and commercial floor space demand by 2025,” said Nevill. “If systems and products that reduce energy are integrated into a building’s design, it can result in up to 50% energy savings. Energy efficiency remains the lowest cost and cleanest energy resource.”

Wu Song, Vice President and Managing Director of Johnson Controls, China, said: “Optimised District Energy systems provide centralised heating and cooling to urban areas with efficiency gains of up to 40-60% over conventional solutions. District Heating solutions are one way to help China achieve its carbon emission reduction target of 40-45% during the 13^th Five Year Plan period.”

Johnson Controls informed that the Summit was established in November 2014 by Xi Jinping, President of China, and Barack Obama, President of the United States, to bring together public and private sector leaders to share best practices in building low-carbon, climate-resilient communities.