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China to restrict ethanol, coal industries
AFP
BEIJING
Petroleumworld.com 06 11 07China will restrict its ethanol and coal liquidification industries as part of efforts to address environmental pollution and realise sustainable development, state press said Sunday.
The State Council, China's cabinet, has approved in principle a "long-term renewable energy development plan," which calls for restrictions on developing the two energy sources due to their environmental impact, the Beijing Youth Daily said.
It was not immediately clear when the plan would be formally approved.
"The rapid development of grain-based ethanol biofuels has resulted in commodity price pressures in non-developed nations," the paper said.
China's grain stores should be focused on feeding its 1.3 billion people and crop lands should reserved for food production, not energy production, it said.
The renewable energy plan would restrict China's ethanol industry to producing fuel from non-grain sources, such as grasses, corn stalks or other plant by-products, it said.
China produced 1.54 million tons of ethanol in 2006, of which 850,000 tons was made from corn, using about two percent of its total corn production, the paper said.
But world production of ethanol rose from 13.9 million tonnes in 2000 to 40.5 million tonnes last year, resulting in sharp rises in world grain prices, it said.
China would also restrict its fledgling coal liquidification industry due to its high investment needs and its high demand for water and energy during the production process, the paper said.
Coal liquidification is the process of making gasoline and other petroleum products by processing coal. Other byproducts of coal liquidification include high carbon dioxide emissions and sulphur dioxide, lead and mercury pollution.
AFP 10 0652 GMT 06 07
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