Fast-Growing China Consumed Less Energy Than U.S. Last Year, Xinhua Says
Aug. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Simon Wardell, energy research manager at IHS Global Insight, talks about the outlook for oil prices and demand after the International Energy Agency's monthly report cited “significant downside risks” to consumption. He speaks with Andrea Catherwood on Bloomberg Television's "The Pulse." (Source: Bloomberg)
China, the world’s fastest-growing major economy, consumed less energy than the U.S. last year, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing a government statement.
Energy use reached 2.146 billion metric tons of oil equivalent, at least 200 million tons less than U.S. consumption, Xinhua said, citing a joint statement by the National Energy Administration and National Bureau of Statistics. China’s energy consumption per capita was 1.61 tons of oil equivalent in 2009, one-fifth of the U.S., according to the Xinhua report.
China consumed 2.252 billion tons of oil equivalent last year, exceeding the 2.17 billion tons used by the U.S., the International Energy Agency said on July 19. BP Plc similarly ranked China ahead of the U.S. in its annual Statistical Review of World Energy released in June. Zhou Xi’an, head of general office at the National Energy Administration, said on July 20 that the IEA data aren’t “very credible.”
“To reduce energy reliance caused by economic growth, China has greatly furthered measures to conserve energy and reduce emissions in recent years,” Xinhua said, citing the two government departments. “Energy demand growth has slowed down over the years.”
Energy consumption growth fell to 5.2 percent in 2009 from 16.1 percent in 2004, Xinhua said. Energy use per unit of gross domestic product dropped 15.6 percent in the four years started 2006, according to Xinhua.
China wants to reduce its energy use per unit of GDP by 20 percent in the five years through 2010. The gauge rose 0.09 percent in the first half from a year earlier, putting pressure on the government to meet the target.
Policy Adjustment
The U.S. remains the largest oil consumer, using 843 million tons in 2009, more than double China’s 405 million, according to BP. China burnt 1.537 billion tons of coal last year, compared with 498 million in the U.S., BP said.
China may adjust export policies for some energy-intensive industries in the second half, in line with its energy conservation goals, Vice Commerce Minister Jiang Yaoping said at a media briefing in Beijing today. Any policy change will still require additional consideration, Jiang said.
To reduce reliance on more-polluting fossil fuels, the Chinese government spent $34.6 billion on clean-fuel projects last year, almost double the $18.6 billion invested by the U.S., according to estimates from Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
While China is under a lot of pressure to reach its energy- conservation goals, the government is confident of achieving its objectives, Xie Ji, deputy director of the environment and resources department at the National Development and Reform Commission, said at the Beijing media briefing.
--Chua Baizhen and Wang Ying in Beijing. Editors: Ryan Woo.
To contact the reporter on this story: Baizhen Chua in Beijing at bchua14@bloomberg.net; Ying Wang in Beijing at ywang30@bloomberg.net
Rate this Page