For the first time in 2018, the proportion of coal consumption in China was below 60%.

Liu Bingjiang, director of the Department of Atmospheric Environment of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said in Beijing on Monday that in 2018, China’s key regions continued to implement total coal consumption control. For the first time, the proportion of coal in primary energy consumption was less than 60%, and the consumption of non-fossil energy and natural gas increased significantly.

Liu Bingjiang said that in 2018, China steadily carried out energy restructuring and optimization. For the first time, the proportion of coal in primary energy consumption is less than 60%, and the consumption of non-fossil energy and natural gas has increased significantly. All localities have actively promoted the comprehensive renovation of coal-fired boilers, and more than 30,000 small boilers under 10 steam tons per hour have been eliminated in accordance with the law throughout the country. In key areas, we will accelerate the elimination of coal-fired boilers below 35 steam tons per hour, and actively promote the transformation of ultra-low emissions of coal-fired boilers above 65 steam tons per hour.

China is a country with more coal and less oil. The proven coal reserves account for 33.8% of the world’s coal reserves. China’s coal output ranked first in the world for many years. Coal played a leading role in China’s disposable energy structure. In the 1950s, coal consumption accounted for 90% of the total energy. In recent years, under the constraints of economic transformation, environmental protection and other factors, the growth rate of coal consumption has slowed down significantly. Coal accounted for 69.2% of energy consumption in 2010 and 64% in 2015.

The National Strategic Action Plan for Energy Development (2014-2020) proposed that by 2020, China’s total coal consumption should be controlled at about 4.2 billion tons, with a proportion of less than 62%, and that Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei and Shandong provinces and cities should reduce their coal consumption by 100 million tons compared with 2012, while the total coal consumption in the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta regions will increase negatively.

Liu Bingjiang said that 2019 was the year when China won the battle to defend the blue sky. We will speed up the optimization and adjustment of industrial structure, energy structure, transportation structure and land use structure in conjunction with relevant departments in various regions, promote economic development and environmental protection, and promote the continuous improvement of air quality in the country.