According to a report released on Thursday by independent think tank Climate Energy Finance, Australia must urgently respond and pursue new partnerships with China to replace jobs.

"There are plenty of opportunities to achieve net zero faster, together," Anthony Coles, chair of the Australia-China Business Council Green Economy Working Group, said.

"Transitioning the energy sector is an obvious first priority."

Lead author of the report, Xuyang Dong tracked the investment trends of China's top five enterprises, which she said pointed to the possibility of the superpower exceeding its energy goals.

China's massive state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are shifting huge capital flows to meet renewable energy and emissions reduction targets.

"The centralised command and control structure of the Chinese economy ... means when the central government tells the SOEs to pivot capital expenditure to ensure key targets are met ... they do it," she said.

"There is no other country in the world that is decarbonising its power sector as fast and efficiently as China."

Already the number one electric vehicle (EV) market globally, China also became the world's leading EV exporter this year.

China's massive state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are shifting huge capital flows to meet renewable energy and emissions reduction targets.

However, it is still building new coal-fired power plants in the name of ensuring national energy security.

Ms Dong said Australia could secure economic and energy independence by working with China to jointly onshore value-added processing of commodities in Australia using 100 per cent renewable energy.

However, while 90 per cent of lithium imports were from Australia in 2021, China is diversifying its supplies amid intense competition.

China continues to invest in the "lithium triangle" in Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia in South America, which together hold half of the world's lithium reserves.

During a Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in October, China secured mineral cooperation deals with more than 10 countries in Asia, South America and Africa.

Report co-author Tim Buckley said the "race to the top" would drive down the cost of all zero-emission technologies.

"It is staggering to see that in response to the US Inflation Reduction Act, China has doubled down on the speed of its own investment in all zero-emissions sectors," he said.

China is aiming to hit a peak in carbon emissions before 2030 and be carbon neutral by 2060, which experts say could reduce global warming by 0.2 to 0.3C if achieved.

China also leads the world in research and development investment, reducing its dependence on acquiring western technology.

Australian Associated Press