China urges upgrading energy consumption pattern

BEIJING — China's top economic planner Tuesday called for implementation of a government plan to promote reform in energy production and consumption.

China's total energy consumption will be capped at 6 billion metric tons of coal equivalent by 2030, according to a government plan for 2016 to 2030, issued by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

The plan is aimed at optimizing the energy mix and ensuring energy security, in the face of a new supply-demand pattern in the global market, said NDRC in an online statement.

By the end of 2030, non-fossil energy is expected to account for 20 percent of the total energy consumption, accompanied with a reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emission per unit of GDP by 60 percent to 65 percent compared with 2005, according to the government plan.

The plan also outlined the target of maintaining self-reliance of energy consumption beyond 80 percent by the end of 2020, in a bid to ensure China's energy security.

In the statement, NDRC pledged strengthened supervision over local authorities for better implementation of the plan.

Advanced technology, sound market mechanism and strong legal support are all necessary in achieving the goal, according to the report.

China's energy intensity, the amount of energy consumed per unit of GDP, decreased 3.8 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2017, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The decline was better than the government target of 3.4 percent in 2017.