China unveils 2015 energy and power expansion plans

China revealed a raft of targets for its energy and power sectors on Thursday, planning to boost capacity in the next five years to feed its growing economy, now the world's top energy user.
China's oil output may hit 190 million tonnes (3.75 million barrels per day) this year, while gas production will exceed 100 billion cubic metres, Xinhua news agency quoted Zhang Guobao, the country's top energy official, as saying on Thursday.
That compares to 185.557 million tonnes of crude oil and 86.74 bcm of gas produced in the first 11 months of 2010. Zhang, who heads the National Energy Administration, also said China's annual refined oil output would reach 310 million tonnes by 2015. Earlier he said its crude oil refining capacity would hit 600 million tonnes, or 12 million bpd, by 2015. China is undergoing a refinery building boom to fuel its robust economic growth.
Its crude oil refining capacity topped 500 million tonnes per year or 10 million bpd, in 2010, Zhang Ping, the head of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said.
But the new capacity is lower than a Reuters calculation based on industry officials and local media, which showed China is likely to add more than 3.0 million bpd of new refining capacity between 2011 and 2015. One refinery that would add 400,000 bpd of capacity is a Chinese-Venezuelan joint venture that got environmental approval from China this week.
China is trying to restrict energy wastage and reduce energy intensity of its economy, a campaign that largely means limiting the growth of the dirtiest fossil fuel, coal. Output of coal hit 3.2 billion tonnes in 2010, up from 2.96 billion tonnes in 2009.
On Thursday, Zhang Ping said the country had met its five-year target to reduce energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product by 20 percent by the end of 2010.
Chinese officials are still deliberating on energy intensity targets for the next five years, but its media reports suggested last October the figure for 2011-2015 could be 17.3 percent. Zhang Guobao said by 2015 China should add 38 gigawatts of nuclear power capacity and 140 gigawatts of hydropower capacity. That compares to about 10 GW and 200 GW at the end of 2010, respectively, out of a total capacity of 950 GW.