How far is China from hitting its climate targets? – An overview of China’s energy sector

China is by far the world’s largest consumer of primary energy. Its vast energy demands are a leading issue for global energy use, driving pollution trends and prices on commodity markets. Despite huge increases in non-fossil capacity from nuclear and renewables, China still burns tremendous amounts of coal to meet its primary energy needs. Domestic energy consumption has risen faster than energy production, and thereby increased China’s dependence on energy imports. China is the world’s largest polluter, so any effort on the country’s part towards cleaner energy has major implications for global decarbonisation efforts. This overview comprises ten briefs on China’s energy sector. They cover recent developments in energy use and the shifting dynamics in primary power generation aimed at meeting China’s energy needs.

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Abstract .... 3
1. Introduction .... 4
2. Coal’s persisting dominance in China’s energy mix .... 5
3. The world’s largest importer and second largest consumer of crude oil .... 7
4. Despite massive investment, the small relative contribution of renewables has only grown slowly .... 10
5. Electricity market reforms focus on improving efficiency of electricity production .... 12
6. Unconventional gas sources will drive domestic production growth .... 14
7. Diversity favoured in gas import routes .... 16
8. Nuclear power plays increasingly important role in China’s energy mix .... 18
9. China has major energy-sector investments on all continents .... 20
10. China’s state-owned energy giants rank among the world’s largest firms ... 22
11. China adopts a national carbon trading scheme to reduce emissions .... 23