Editorials

Time is running out

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-04-08 07:50

The government's renewed effort to close down outdated production methods in industries that use a lot of energy and are major polluters is sorely needed to hit the country's five-year energy-conservation goal.

The government is currently far behind in its efforts to save energy and its goal of cutting its energy intensity by 20 percent between 2006 and 2010. To make progress, it must forcefully and quickly implement new measures.

How far is China behind? By the end of 2009, the per unit GDP energy consumption had fallen only 14.38 percent from the 2005 level.

Rapid industrialization and urbanization is whetting a growing appetite for energy. Energy consumption over the past decade soared from the equivalent of 1.39 billion tons of coal to an estimated 3.1 billion tons in 2009.

To make its economic growth sustainable, China has managed to cut its energy intensity by 12.45 percent in the first three years of the 11th Five-Year Plan period.

But when China launched a massive stimulus package to fight the global economic crisis last year, investment flooded into several energy-intensive industries, rolling back its progress on energy conservation.

This year is the last and decisive year for China to realize its five-year energy goal. A rough calculation shows that the country has to cut energy intensity deeper than any of the previous four years to reach that goal.

On Tuesday, the State Council ordered a massive shutdown of outdated projects in nine energy-consuming industries, such as steel, power, coal, coking coal, cement, ferroalloy, calcium carbide and nonferrous metals.

We're not sure if these strict measures, even if they are properly carried out, will be enough to hit the nation's five-year aim because we see no signs of abatement in feverish investments.

While policymakers need to further tighten control over new investment projects, they also must shut outdated energy guzzlers down as quick as possible.