The report to the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China stated that socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era, marking a new historical juncture in China’s development. Recently, General Secretary Xi Jinping once again emphasized at the APEC CEO Summit that “China’s development is a historic process.” Socialism with Chinese characteristics has advanced continuously through a process that unifies continuity with stage-specificity; each stage of development calls for forward-looking ideological guidance, strategic planning, and innovative approaches. In the new era, in order to provide an inexhaustible source of momentum for securing a decisive victory in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and achieving the Two Centenary Goals, the energy sector must accurately grasp the stage-specific characteristics of China’s energy development in the new era and unswervingly advance the revolution in energy production and consumption. It must strive to build a clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient energy system that is well aligned with the economic and social development of the new era, thereby providing robust energy security for realizing the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.

 

 

New Achievements in China’s Energy Reform and Development

 

 

　　Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, guided by General Secretary Xi Jinping’s strategic thinking on the energy revolution, China has achieved new and significant milestones in energy development, realizing a historic leap in energy reform and development. China’s energy self-sufficiency rate has remained above 80% for an extended period, energy technology is advancing at an unprecedented pace, and China’s international influence in the energy sector is steadily growing, thereby contributing Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions to the building of a global energy governance system and the promotion of the global energy transition.

　　The strategic framework for the energy revolution has been essentially established. In line with the requirements of the new development philosophy, the overall blueprint for China’s energy revolution has been largely mapped out. For the first time, a three-dimensional, multi-level planning system has been put in place that integrates comprehensiveness and specialization, medium-term and long-term perspectives, and national and regional dimensions in energy development. The guiding principles of the energy revolution have taken deep root in the minds of all stakeholders, becoming the fundamental code of conduct and conscious action for the energy sector. Moreover, the core framework—comprising the “four pillars and eight supporting beams” of the energy revolution—has been basically formed, providing robust institutional guarantees and policy support for energy development.

　　Energy development has achieved all-round, multi-level progress; the low-carbon transformation of energy consumption is accelerating, with nearly 100% of newly built urban buildings now complying with mandatory energy-efficiency standards. A green transportation system is taking shape at an accelerated pace, with more than one million new-energy vehicles promoted to date and over 170,000 public charging stations in place. A simple, moderate, green, and low-carbon lifestyle is becoming increasingly prevalent. The Action Plan for Air Pollution Prevention and Control has been fully implemented. Compared with 2012, in 2016 China’s share of clean-energy consumption rose by about 5.2 percentage points, the share of coal consumption fell by about 6.5 percentage points, and energy intensity per unit of GDP declined by roughly 17.9%. A green and diversified energy-supply system is being established at an accelerated rate. Compared with 2012, in 2016 the share of installed capacity from renewable sources increased from 28.4% to 34.6%, and the share of electricity generated from renewables rose from 19.9% to 25.9%. We are committed to the clean development of fossil fuels and actively promoting the clean and efficient use of coal. By the end of 2016, cumulative energy-saving retrofits had been carried out on about 460 million kilowatts of coal-fired power capacity, and ultra-low-emission upgrades had been implemented on approximately 450 million kilowatts. Shale-gas production has grown by leaps and bounds, making China the third country to achieve industrial-scale shale-gas production. Momentum for energy transformation and development is strengthening: a new round of power-sector reform is being comprehensively rolled out, the establishment of trading institutions is largely complete, generation and consumption plans as well as distribution and retail electricity services are being progressively liberalized, and market vitality is further enhanced. The overall plan for oil-and-gas-sector reform has been released, and market-oriented reforms in multiple areas are being accelerated. Energy-price reform has been intensified, with transmission and distribution tariffs now covered across all provincial power grids. In 2016, corporate electricity costs were reduced by nearly RMB 130 billion, and gas expenses by close to RMB 100 billion. Following the “three batches” strategic approach, independent innovation capacity in key sectors has improved markedly.

　　All-round expansion of international energy cooperation. The Belt and Road Initiative has been steadily implemented, with accelerated efforts to promote the global outreach of China’s energy equipment, technologies, standards, and services, and continuous progress in interconnecting energy networks. Construction has commenced on the Hualong One nuclear power unit—developed with independent intellectual property rights—in Pakistan, while nuclear power projects in the United Kingdom and Argentina have made significant headway. A series of major international energy conferences have been held, further strengthening China’s leading role in global energy governance and enhancing its influence and capacity to shape the international energy landscape.