US expert John Lemmon takes advantage of his expertise in the energy industry in his work at the National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon Energy, an R&D facility funded by the Shenhua Group. [Photo/China Daily]

Lemmon has worked with US research teams on similar projects that encountered technical problems, which couldn't be solved within a short period of time.

"We couldn't understand him at first. However, we gradually realized the challenges he pointed out as our experiments went deeper. So we adjusted our research direction, and the progress has been smooth," Tang says.

Lemmon says that relationships among colleagues here are strong. He often goes out with his Chinese co-workers to visit various areas around Beijing. Or they have dinner and play sports together after work.

"He's always passionate and positive," says Tang, adding that as a foreigner, Lemmon has tried to blend in.

He has a Chinese name and performs Chinese songs at the company's annual gala.

"Our goal is to establish Shenhua as a technical leader in the world," says Lemmon.

He has played a role in helping the company grow internationally, through organizing international conferences and inviting professors from top universities to collaborate with NICE.

Lemmon says he has observed drastic changes in the industry in China since his first visit.

"All the major economies in the world now want to move to a cleaner energy source. And there is a strong pull for China, as the second-largest economy and with a large population and fast growth, to clean the air and water," he says.

"There are policies from the central government to meet these goals, and we want to drive our research in that direction to meet those policy goals (as well)."

He says the industry he works in is a driver of the economy and is directly related to cutting carbon emissions. The current challenge is to strike a balance between available technology and economic costs.

That's why the projects focus on affordability and viability, he says, adding that an electric grid is a more complicated system than most people think, and it takes a long-term vision to transform it to make it both green and cost-effective.