Yesterday, the State Council Information Office issued a white paper on “Energy Status and Policyâ€, which introduced China’s energy development status, energy development strategies and targets, and other policies and measures. This is the first time China has published a white paper in the energy field in the past decade. The White Paper pointed out that the current status of China's energy resources is relatively high, with low per capita, uneven distribution, and difficult development. In the future, China will pursue a conservation-first energy strategy based on domestic energy and actively and steadily push forward energy price reforms. The white paper also emphasized that China will not threaten the world's energy security. Experts pointed out that the issue of energy security has been raised to a strategic height, and energy reform is already in full swing.
Energy supply "based on domestic"
The energy white paper puts “savings first†at the top of China’s future energy strategy. The relevant person in charge of the National Development and Reform Commission stated that the so-called "saving priority" is to regard resource conservation as a basic national policy. The responsible person pointed out that while pursuing the principle of “saving firstâ€, China’s energy supply must also “base on the domestic marketâ€, which means relying mainly on increasing domestic energy supply to meet the growing demand of the energy market.
Professor Huang Suyi, a doctoral advisor and an expert in the energy field at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, told reporters that in the future China will strengthen the diversification of its energy structure and will invest more efforts in gasification and the development of new energy sources.
The White Paper stated that in the future, the basic role of the market in allocating resources will be fully utilized, various economic components will be encouraged to enter the energy sector, and energy market reforms will be actively promoted. It is worth noting that the previously drafted Energy Law also proposed that the Chinese energy price formation mechanism will be dominated by market regulation and that market regulation be combined with government regulation.
Professor Dong Xiucheng, vice president of the School of Business Administration of China University of Petroleum, said in an interview with this reporter that the marketization of energy prices is the direction of the energy market reform, and the pace of future reforms will be further accelerated.
Dismiss "China threat theory"
The energy white paper also places special emphasis on China's desire to strengthen cooperation with the international community in the energy sector. Relevant officials of the National Development and Reform Commission stated that “China has never had, did not, and will not pose a threat to world energy security in the past.â€
Professor Huang Suyi told reporters that the reasons for the high prices of international energy prices, especially oil prices, are not entirely affected by the relationship between supply and demand, and it is not the result of China’s massive imports. It is more influenced by speculation by international speculators. The publication of this white paper will help improve the misconceptions of the international community.