China oil demand growing, US agency says

China's escalating energy demand is increasing its reliance on oil imports despite the nation's effort to control fossil-fuel consumption, according to a report from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), China Daily reported on February 6.

The independent statistical agency within the Department of Energy said it expects China to import more than 66 percent of its total oil by 2012 and 72 percent by 2040 "as demand is expected to grow faster than domestic crude supply".

The State Council's 12th Five-Year Plan for energy development, published early last year, included a measure to cap oil imports at 61 percent by the end of 2015. The aim was to limit dependence on fossil fuels while developing cleaner burning fuels to protect the environment after more than three decades of rapid economic growth. The 61 percent cap was an increase from 2012, when China imported 57 percent of its crude-oil needs.

Oil, China's second-largest energy source, accounted for 18 percent of total energy consumption in 2011, according to the EIA. Coal, overwhelmingly the top source, supplied 69 percent.

Copyright: China Daily, 2014