China to develop low-carbon economy

China's top economic planning body has confirmed the government will take concrete actions to develop a low-carbon economy after it pledged to substantially reduce carbon intensity at last year's Copenhagen Conference.

China would include the low-carbon targets in the 12th five-year plan for national economic development (2011-2015) to build an energy-saving, ecologically friendly society, the National Development and Reform Commission said in a report to the Standing Committee of the 11th National People's Congress (NPC).

The report said the government would launch a series of technological and fiscal support policies to promote the use of non-fossil, renewable energies including wind, solar, biomass, geothermal and nuclear power, aiming to increase its proportion of primary energy consumption to about 15 percent by 2020 from 9.9 percent at the end of last year.

China's installed wind power capacity reached 15 million kilowatts, with 10 million kilowatts under construction at the end of June 2009, while nuclear power under construction, installed hydro-electric power capacity and solar heating collection areas were the highest in the world, it said.

The commission was also planning to compile an emissions inventory of greenhouse gases in an effort to build a monitoring and checking system to cut carbon emissions.

The economic planner decided to curb redundant construction and industries with surplus production capacities, such as steel, cement and electrolytic aluminum, to promote the energy efficiency and environmental protection.

Another NDRC report on the transformation of the economic development pattern delivered to the standing committee called for optimizing the financial expenditure structure to increase input in public welfare and step up efforts to expand the social security coverage.

The government had drafted a plan on regional development to transfer industries in affluent eastern areas to central and western regions.

The commission said in a report that China would maintain a proper lending scale under the guidance of the Central Bank to avoid credit fluctuations and establish 1,300 rural financial institutions to encourage lending in rural areas.

The State Council announced in November that China would reduce the intensity of carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP in 2020 by 40 to 45 percent compared with the level of 2005.