Powering Hong Kong’s Next Chapter of Growth
As Hong Kong prepares its first Five-Year Plan, it has an opportunity to strengthen the foundations for future growth. In this blog, I explain why electricity should be recognised as strategic economic infrastructure, how it underpins Hong Kong's competitiveness, and what it means for Hong Kong as an international financial centre.
4 September 2026
The development of Hong Kong's first Five-Year Plan marks an important milestone for the city. As China embarks on the 15th Five-Year Plan, Hong Kong has been entrusted with a unique role as the "Four Centres and One Highland", namely the international financial, shipping, trade, and innovation and technology (I&T) centres, as well as a global hub for top-tier talent.
Realising that vision will take more than ambition. It will require long-term planning and investments in the infrastructure needed to support innovation, attract investment and create opportunities for future generations. This is particularly true for I&T, where growth in areas such as artificial intelligence, data centres, advanced manufacturing and research facilities depend on reliable and resilient infrastructure.
One point CLP highlighted in our recent submission to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government's public consultation on the Five-Year Plan is that electricity should be recognised as strategic economic infrastructure. This is particularly important in the context of the Northern Metropolis. Accounting for roughly one-third of Hong Kong's land area and planned population, the Northern Metropolis is the city's next growth engine and a key platform for deeper integration with other areas in the Greater Bay Area. To realise its full potential, planning for electricity infrastructure must be integrated into the development process from the outset. As the electricity supplier serving the Northern Metropolis, CLP is expanding its network capacity and working closely with the Government to secure adequate land for the development of future electricity infrastructure. The goal is simple: to ensure power infrastructure is in place ahead of demand, enabling businesses to invest with confidence and new industries to establish, grow and scale efficiently.
Building on Hong Kong’s Strengths
If Hong Kong's Five-Year Plan is about laying the foundations for future growth, then it is important to understand what drives investment decisions. Cost is naturally part of the equation, and electricity tariffs are sometimes cited as an example. While energy costs matter, direct comparisons between Hong Kong’s electricity tariffs and those of other cities or jurisdictions such as Shenzhen should be treated in context. Tariffs reflect different market structures, regulatory frameworks, fuel mix and policy objectives. Even when energy is sourced from the Mainland, it is not sold at the same price on both sides of the border. Natural gas and petroleum products are familiar examples, and electricity is no different. Prices reflect local market conditions, not simply where the energy comes from.
More fundamentally, investment decisions are rarely driven by any single factor. Businesses assess the overall attractiveness of a location, including its regulatory environment, access to capital, infrastructure, connectivity and talent. By these measures, many of Hong Kong's enduring advantages remain highly relevant today. They include a strong legal and regulatory framework, free flow of capital, deep financial markets, a simple tax system, world-class connectivity and an international talent pool. For I&T industries such as data centres, the city also offers robust data governance, intellectual property protection, low-latency telecommunications networks and highly reliable electricity supply.
These strengths help explain why, despite intense regional competition, Hong Kong is one of the leading data centre markets in Asia Pacific, according to international property consultancy Cushman & Wakefield. Investors continue to be attracted by Hong Kong’s overall value proposition and its unique role as a “super connector” and “super value-adder” linking the Chinese Mainland with international markets.
Reinforcing Hong Kong's Financial Leadership
Hong Kong’s future growth will depend not only on its ability to attract new industries, but also on its continued strength as an international financial centre.
As customers, investors and regulators place greater emphasis on sustainability, businesses are under increasing pressure to reduce emissions and demonstrate progress towards their climate commitments. Access to reliable and traceable sources of zero-carbon energy is therefore becoming an important consideration. Energy is no longer simply an operating cost. It is a strategic factor in decisions about where to invest and grow.
For Hong Kong, this presents both challenges and opportunities. As a compact and land-constrained city, it will need to work closely with regional partners to secure traceable sources of zero-carbon electricity needed to support long-term development and rising electricity demand from sectors such as data centres and artificial intelligence. Delivering this transition will require substantial investment in energy infrastructure, cross-boundary projects and emerging technologies.
This is where Hong Kong's strengths come into play. Decarbonisation will require not only investment in green activities, but also well-designed transition finance solutions that help businesses and industries reduce their carbon footprint in a practical and credible manner. With deep capital markets, international connectivity and its unique position as a bridge between the Chinese Mainland and global markets, Hong Kong is well-placed to support this transition. Recent efforts to expand the city’s sustainable finance taxonomy, advance sustainability reporting frameworks and support carbon market development are important steps in this direction.
Hong Kong is well-positioned to become a leading platform for mobilising green and transition capital into large-scale energy infrastructure, including zero-carbon electricity, grid modernisation and other lower-carbon technologies. By combining world-class financial services with practical decarbonisation pathways, the city can support economic growth, strengthen its international competitiveness and help channel investment into Asia’s transition to a lower-carbon future.
Looking Beyond the Next Five Years
A Five-Year Plan is not only about the next five years. It is about laying the foundations for the decades ahead.
Electricity may not always be visible, but it is fundamental to almost every aspect of Hong Kong's future development. By planning and investing ahead, supported by sustainable finance as an enabler of the climate transition, we can help ensure Hong Kong remains competitive, resilient and well positioned to capture the opportunities of its next chapter of growth.
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