China seeks to balance energy needs, green power transition

Employees work on the solar panel production line at a company in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province. [Si Wei/For China Daily]

China is accelerating wind and solar power development for its transition to green energy even as it increases coal, oil, and gas output to ensure energy security this year, the National Energy Administration said.

By this year-end, the installed capacity of wind power will reach about 430 million kilowatts, and the installed capacity of solar power will reach about 490 million kW, the NEA said at a recent conference that mapped out goals for this year.

It also said more efforts will be made to coordinate hydropower development and ecological protection with a goal of 423 million kW of installed hydropower capacity by 2023.

The NEA also vowed to actively develop nuclear power in a safe and orderly manner. The goal is to increase the installed capacity of nuclear power by 2.89 million kW.

"China will make efforts to improve the ability to ensure energy supply, increase the security and stability of the supply chain in the energy sector. Meanwhile, the country will increase the share of non-fossil energy under its green commitment and continue to increase the supply of clean energies," said Zhang Jianhua, head of the NEA, at the conference.

To improve the ability to ensure energy production and supply, further efforts will be made to approve the construction of smart coal mines, push the coal mines under construction to start production as soon as possible, and enhance the ability to safely increase coal production and ensure supply. It is also important to promote the planning and construction of trans-provincial power transmission channels, the NEA said.

Wang Lining, director of the oil market department at the Economics and Technology Research Institute, an affiliate with the China National Petroleum Corp, said that with the rapid development of new energies, the role of coal in China's energy structure will continue to change, from being the main source of supply to a supporting role and as an emergency back-up in case of shortage of new energy resources.

The share of coal in the energy structure will continue to decline to 44.3 percent in 2030 and 5.8 percent in 2060, according to the institute's estimates.

It is also important to increase oil and gas production and supply, promote major pipeline projects, and improve the oil and gas reserve capacity. It is estimated that crude oil production will reach 205 million metric tons and natural gas output will increase by more than 6 billion cubic meters by the end of this year, NEA said.

The NEA also said international cooperation on clean energy will be deepened by establishing China-ASEAN and China-Arab clean energy cooperation centers, and by facilitating cooperation with European countries in areas like hydrogen energy, energy storage, wind power and smart energy.