Datong city in North China's Shanxi province will cooperate with the German Energy Agency in the energy sector after the two sides signed a strategic cooperation memorandum of understanding Oct 19.

According to the memorandum, the two sides will carry out exploration and practice in urban energy transformation and related technologies, applying these technologies to Datong International Energy Tech-Innovation Park.

A quality control system and management mechanism will also jointly be established and implemented to realize low-carbon, green urban construction and management in Datong.

Famous for its ancient Buddhist rock carvings, Datong became China's "capital of coal" as demand for energy rocketed in the 1980s. The city once experienced an extended boom and accumulated enormous wealth.

However, the overdependence on coal gradually brought economic and environmental problems to the city which was beset by smog and economic backwardness for many years.

To change the situation, in recent years Datong has introduced policies to protect the local environment and reform the utilization of energy. In 2016, for the fourth year in a row, Datong's air quality was ranked the best in Shanxi province.

Wu Hongwen, mayor of Datong, expressed the hope of deepening the partnership with the German Energy Agency in energy systems and technology, building a regular cooperation and communication platform, introducing high-tech talents and research and development teams to local energy tech-innovation parks and promoting advanced technologies and products in Datong.

After a week-long visit to the city, Andreas Kuhlmann, chief executive of the German Energy Agency, had an overview of the previous coal capital and its future development plan. He recognized Datong's efforts and determination to conduct an energy revolution and said that the German Energy Agency is willing to explore energy development with its partner by sharing resources and experience.