Former State Department official: China is exploiting U.S. energy ambitions

Former U.S. ambassador Peter Hoekstra on Monday sounded the alarm over the Biden administration's goal to move the country away from fossil fuels, warning that Chinese tech companies are taking advantage of the U.S. as it pushes for a renewable energy future.

Hoekstra argues that by exploting U.S. tax incentives to build electric energy projects, China's industry is being boosted and America is becoming further dependent on China for energy needs.

"It'd be very ironic if we moved towards electric vehicles to the numbers that the Biden administration is talking about and the key component comes from China," he told Fox News Digital. "That is a terrible, terrible place to be."

The former congressman also said  if the U.S. wants an EV future, it should immediately establish its own energy capabilities rather than have its future controlled by an "unreliable and a threatening adversary."

The People’s Republic of China produces most of the mineral commodities that are crucial to producing clean energy.

In addition, China controls most if not all of the mines that produce them. Cobalt is widely regarded as a key element in the renewable energy sector.

As of 2019, 8 of the 14 largest cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are reportedly Chinese-owned and account for almost half of the country’s output.

According to Benchmark Minerals, China owns 80% of the cobalt refinery sector. 

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