China to cap coal consumption

BEIJING - China will enforce a strict limit on total coal consumption, and continue to cut production, said a senior energy official on Wednesday.

Li Haofeng, deputy director of the coal office under the National Energy Administration, made the remarks at an international coal summit. He said that measures were needed to ensure the sustainable development of the coal industry.

To this end, he said, China will promote the clean, efficient usage of coal by using some of the world's most advanced process to support the industrial upgrade.

The country will step up coal market reform, and strengthen cooperation between China and other countries with huge coal production and consumption.

China will reduce the ratio of coal in primary energy consumption from 66 percent this year to around 50 percent by 2050, said the National Coal Association.

In the first three quarters this year, China produced 2.72 billion tons of coal, down 4.62 percent year on year, according to data by China Coal Transportation and Sale Society.