“Grouping” or “Ride One’s Coattails”?—How Developing Countries along the Belt and Road Satisfy Themselves

Abstract

China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) will inevitably affect global energy cooperation. Along the Belt and Road, there are many developing countries. To understand the energy cooperation and development of these countries comprehensively is of great significance to guide their development and evaluate the impact of the BRI on the world energy and economic pattern. However, there is insufficient attention on those countries. Based on embodied energy analysis, a method which can track direct and indirect energy consumption in the economic system, effectively linking energy with the economy and environment, this paper proposes an evolution model of the embodied energy flow of the countries. Then, it simulates the evolution of the embodied energy flow under different cooperation strategies. The results show that if cooperation between countries positively affects their cooperation with other countries, adopting a mixed strategy is an advisable choice. On the contrary, cooperation with “powerful” countries in the network will be more conducive to the embodied energy flow. This article provides a new perspective and foundation for further discussion on the economy, trade, and energy cooperation along the Belt and Road.

Exploring the Perceived Prospects of the Belt & Road Initiative on Policy Impacts for Madagascar

“…The BRI strategy has been focused on infrastructure development, among other things, in several countries. Its main aim is to promote the interconnection between China and other countries by actively participating in the investment and construction of projects along the BRI route (Chen, 2021). Additionally, the BRI project is targeted at helping to achieve industrial upgrading and transformation, as well as infrastructure construction in countries involved in the BRI project [Chen, 2021], [Gu, 2019].…”

“…Its main aim is to promote the interconnection between China and other countries by actively participating in the investment and construction of projects along the BRI route (Chen, 2021). Additionally, the BRI project is targeted at helping to achieve industrial upgrading and transformation, as well as infrastructure construction in countries involved in the BRI project [Chen, 2021], [Gu, 2019]. It should be mentioned that the major significance of the extravagant BRI project is to offer suggestions and achieve a "win-win" economic development between China and the countries along the BRI route.…”

“…China's investment stock in Madagascar (majorly in the renewable energy industry) reached $766 million, and the direct investment reached $71.20 million in 2017 [Qin, 2021]. The Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB) and China's EximBank are major financiers of the BRI and remain important partners in African infrastructure development projects [Chen, 2021]. It is, therefore, not surprising that Madagascar, just like most African countries, seem to be embracing China as a potential partner.…”

Microscopic, mesoscopic, and macroscopic structural correlations between the international energy “investment–trade” networks based on network motifs

“…With the development of economic globalization, energy commodities and energy finance markets are bringing countries closer together. Some countries have become a strong community of shared interests relying on energy trade and transnational investment (Chen et al, 2021). Finding the correlation between energy trade and investment is becoming increasingly crucial for understanding international financial and economic patterns.…”