A national energy program has been unveiled to better equip
large-scale coal mines to improve safety and ensure ample fuel
supplies.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said 13
designated national coal production bases are being planned for
coal rich autonomous regions and provinces such as Shanxi, Shaanxi and Inner Mongolia.
The production capacities of the areas, which have about 500
mines, are expected to eventually reach 1.3 billion tons, nearly 60
percent of China's total production last year.
"The government aims to make some of the bases each produce at
least 100 million tons every year to safeguard China's energy
supply," said the commission's spokesman when unveiling the
program.
The bases include the Shenfu-Dongsheng coal zone, located along
the boundary between Shaanxi Province and the Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region in north China. It became China's first
100-million-ton coal production base last year.
Huang Shengchu, president of the China Coal Information
Institute, told China Daily yesterday that the country faces
demanding challenges in streamlining its coal industry and closing
down small, dangerous pits. "The measures of setting up large-scale
bases will help relieve the pressure," said Huang.
He said the program aims to improve the technical standards of
the mines and their efficiency in utilizing resources.
He also suggested that foreign investors, especially
multinationals, should be allowed to enter the coal mining industry
to help improve mining safety in the country.
"At least one or two bases out of the national conglomerates
should be open to overseas investors," he said.
He said foreign companies in the field of mining were rich in
safety management, which would help reduce the number of accidents.
"We can also gather some experience in cooperatively mining coal
from other resource-rich countries," said Huang.
Zhao Tiechui, vice administrator of the State Administration of
Work Safety, recently warned of excessive coal production capacity
in China.
China would be able to produce 2.75 billion tons of coal
annually after new facilities are put into operation in the next
few years. In 2005, 2.15 billion tons of coal was mined, satisfying
the country's demand.
Previous forecasts by a team in the administration predicted
China's coal demand would be between 2.5-2.6 billion tons in 2010,
due to the country's massive energy-saving campaign.
Coal accounted for 76 percent of China's energy use in 2005.
According to the team, that level is likely to reach up to 80 per
cent after 2010.
"The current supply-demand situation has left us enough room to
shut down poorly-equipped small coal mines," said Zhao.
By the middle of 2005, China had 24,000 small coal mines with
annual production capacities ranging from 10,000-30,000 tons. They
account for 70 percent of the total number of coal mines in the
country.
China plans to shut down 12,900 small pits before 2007 to
improve the safety record of the industry.
(China Daily May 8, 2006)