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China to cap coal use at 2.72 bt of standard coal by 2020

China’s coal consumption should be controlled below 2.72 billion tonnes of standard coal equivalent, according to a report released in an international seminar for the 13th Five-Year Plan on November 4.

As a large energy consumer around the world, China’s energy consumption in 2014 totaled 4.26 billion tonnes of standard coal equivalent, accounting for 25% of the global volume, with coal consumption taking even more than 50% of the global total.

Specifically, coal use for power sector will be controlled within 1.39 billion tonnes of standard coal equivalent or 51% of the total; that of manufacture and building sectors will be controlled below 1.17 billion tonnes and 240 million tonnes, accounting for 40.2% and 8.8%, separately.

This move may force over half of the nation’s coal producers to withdraw from the market within five years, industry insiders said.

The number of coal mining and washing enterprises across the country should be reduced from 6,390 in 2015 to 3,000 or less during the “13th Five-Year Plan” period ended in 2020, resulting in 671,000 and 191,000 lay-off workers from coal mining and washing industries, respectively.

To realize the coal consumption control goal, the share of coal consumption will drop 8.6 percentage points from a year ago to 57.4% in the total energy consumption; while the share of natural gas use will be increased to 10%, and that of non-fossil energy use will up to 15.2%.

China has promised to the world to peak carbon emission in 2030, and vowed to control coal use below 3.8 billion and 3.4 billion tonnes by 2020 and 2030, respectively.

Additionally, the realization of coal consumption control should be based on a sound withdraw system for coal producers, especially the reemployment guarantee system for laid-off staffs in coal industry.

Meanwhile, total energy consumption of the country should be or no more than 4.74 billion tonnes of standard coal equivalent by 2020, according to the report.

source: http://en.sxcoal.com