China plans to reduce the share of coal to below 60% in its primary energy use by the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period in 2020, and further cut it to around 50% by 2030, one official with the National Energy Administration (NEA) said at a summit forum on September 27.<br /> <br /> Presently, coal accounts for just above 65% of China's consumption of primary energy, and the government aims to bring it further below this level by the end of this year. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> To properly control total energy consumption, the government will continue to focus on reducing total coal consumption by encouraging efficient and clean use of the fuel, according to the energy plan currently being prepared for the next five-year period.<br /> <br /> Equivalent replacement will be applied to coal-fired projects in developed areas, with new clean and high-efficient projects to replace old dirty ones.<br /> <br /> Modern coal chemicals would also be developed moderately, the official said.<br /> <br /> China will focus on developing its nine coal-power bases in 14 main coal-producing areas, with priorities given to three coal producing bases -- eastern Inner Mongolia, eastern Gansu province’s Huanglong area and northern Shaanxi.<br /> <br /> The government will encourage development of the Ningdong and Shendong coal bases as well as the three bases in Shanxi province, while restrict development of the coal bases in central Hebei, western Shandong, and in Henan and Anhui provinces.<br /> <br /> The Xinjiang coal base will be optimized and developed as a reserve base, the official noted.<br /> <br /> Meanwhile, the Menghua railway linking coal-rich western Inner Mongolia to southeastern China’s Jiangxi province is expected to put into operation during the 13th Five-Year Plan period, helping ease energy supply in central China. The railway is designed with a transport capacity of 200 million tonnes annually.<br /> <br /> The country also plans to boost exploration of oil and natural gas. It aims to increase the output of natural gas to 400 billion cubic meters by 2020, occupying 10% of the total energy consumption, according to the plan.<br /> <br /> The plan also attaches great importance to the construction of hydropower base in southwestern China, aiming to realize installed capacity of around 350 GW by 2020.<br /> <br /> Moreover, the capacity of wind power will be increased to 200 GW by 2020, doubling the target for the 12th Five-Year Plan period, and of solar power to 100 GW, five times the target for end-2015.<br /> <br /> <p> The nuclear power capacity is expected to reach 58 GW by 2020, but only 53 GW could be put into operation at the current pace of development, the official said. </p> <p style="text-align:center;"> <img src="/upfiles/news/image/20141009/20141009174338_3951.jpg" alt="" /> </p> <br />