China becomes the world’s first energy consumer

According to the International Energy Agency, China became in 2009 the world’s biggest energy consumer in front of the USA. Indeed it consumed 2.25 billion tons of oil equivalent (TOE) while the latter consumed 2.17 billions.

To the Wall Street Journal : ” China’s total energy consumption was just half that of the U.S. 10 years ago, but in many of the years since, China saw annual double-digit growth rates. “

The IEA notes that these figures would be much higher without the important energy efficiency efforts carried out in the past few years.

Furthermore the People’s Republic has importantly developped its wind power and solar energies capacity and will continue to do so. A massive nuclear project is also expected in the next decade.

The agency notes that Chinese people still consume only a third of the per capita OECD average.  Let us all hope they won’t reach those levels and that we in the OECD will reduce massively ours as energy efficiency has a HUGE potential.

Here is a selection of articles I published based on this very topic :

• Energy conservation is the cheapest solution ;
• The huge potential of energy efficiency ;
• The panacea to our energy and climate problems

Even if the country committed itself to massive efficiency efforts its energy consumption is due to keep growing at double digits rates. This will have many implications on oil, natural gas and climate change.

For more details on today’s news, please refer to the Wall Street Journal’s full article.

Related posts:

1. A renewed interest for energy efficiency
2. Energy conservation is the cheapest solution
3. More energy efficiency in the European Union
4. IEA urges governments for energy efficiency
5. IEA publishes its World Energy Outlook 2009

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