China’s coal production sees the biggest drop on record | BP World Energy Outlook 2017 released

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July 5 — The 66th edition of the BP World Energy Statistics Yearbook (Chinese version) (hereinafter referred to as the “Yearbook”) was released in Beijing. According to energy-related data from 2016, a long-term trend of slower growth in global energy consumption has taken shape over the past year; the global energy market is still dealing with recent price challenges while continuing to undergo long-term changes. 3 Key Points about China • China remains the world’s largest energy consumer, accounting for 23% of global energy consumption and 27% of the growth in global energy use. • China’s energy structure is continuously improving. Although coal remains the main fuel in China’s energy consumption, accounting for 62%, its production declined by 7.9%, marking the largest annual drop since data collection began in 1981. • China’s carbon dioxide emissions declined for the second consecutive year, by 0.7%. 　　• In 2016, renewable energy continued to experience the fastest growth rate, with China overtaking the United States to become the world’s largest producer of renewable electricity. Over half of the growth in renewable energy came from wind power, which saw a 16% increase in 2016. Solar energy increased by 30%. Although solar energy accounts for only 18% of renewable energy production, its growth accounts for about one-third of the total growth in renewable energy. In 2016, global primary energy consumption increased by 1%, remaining roughly the same as in 2014 and 2015, but it was below the 10-year average of 1.8%; a long-term trend of slower growth in global energy consumption has thus taken shape. 1.3% China’s energy consumption in 2016 increased by only 1.3%, the lowest level since 1997, but it remained the fastest-growing in terms of energy consumption globally. The carbon emissions resulting from 0.1% of energy consumption in 2016 increased by only 0.1% on a year-on-year basis, and the average increase in carbon emissions from 2014 to 2016 was the lowest since 1981. 43.73 The average Brent oil price in 2016 was only 43.73 dollars per barrel, lower than 52.39 dollars per barrel in 2015, and represented the lowest annual level since 2004. 1.6% Oil remains the primary source of energy, accounting for about one-third of total primary energy consumption ； In 2016, global oil consumption increased by an average of 1.6 million barrels per day, representing a growth rate of 1.6%; this was the second consecutive year in which the growth rate exceeded the 10-year average of 1.2% ； China and India are the main sources of growing oil consumption, with increases of 400,000 barrels per day and 330,000 barrels per day respectively. 400,000: Global oil production in 2016 increased by only 400,000 barrels per day, marking the lowest level since 2013. Production in the Middle East rose by 1.7 million barrels per day, with the main increases coming from Iran (700,000 barrels per day), Iraq (400,000 barrels per day), and Saudi Arabia (400,000 barrels per day) ； Production outside the Middle East declined by 1.3 million barrels per day, with the United States experiencing the largest drop of 400,000 barrels per day, followed by China (310,000 barrels per day) and Nigeria (280,000 barrels per day). The growth rate of oil refining capacity at 600,000 barrels per day slowed down significantly; in 2016, the increase was only 600,000 barrels per day, far less than the 1.8 million barrels per day recorded in 2015. 1.5% In 2016, global natural gas consumption increased by 63 billion cubic meters, representing a growth rate of 1.5%, which was lower than the 10-year average of 2.3% ； Among them, EU natural gas consumption increased by 30 billion cubic meters in 2016, representing a growth rate of 7.1%, the highest increase since 2010. Russia experienced the largest decline in consumption, amounting to 120 billion cubic meters. 0.3% Global natural gas production in 2016 increased by only a slight amount of 21 billion cubic meters, representing a growth rate of 0.3%. Australia and Iran experienced the greatest increases in production, with rises of 19 billion cubic meters and 13 billion cubic meters respectively, while North America saw the largest decline, amounting to 21 billion cubic meters ； Global natural gas trade volume increased by 4.8%, driven mainly by growth in LNG trade. Australia recorded the largest net increase in LNG exports, at 19 billion cubic meters. It is worth noting that the United States saw its LNG exports surge from 700 million cubic meters in 2015 to 4.4 billion cubic meters in 2016. Coal, at 1.7%, remains the primary energy source most affected by these shocks; its consumption in 2016 declined by 53 million barrels of oil equivalent, a decrease of about 1.7%, and its share in total primary energy consumption dropped to 28.1%, the lowest level since 2004. The United States experienced the largest decline in consumption, at 33 million tons of oil equivalent, followed by China, with a reduction of 26 million tons of oil equivalent ； Regarding coal consumption, the UK is worth mentioning: by 2016, it had reduced its coal consumption by 52.5%, bringing it to its lowest level ever. 6.2% In terms of coal production, global coal output declined by 231 million tons of oil equivalent in 2016, representing a 6.2% drop – the largest decline on record. China’s coal production reduction was particularly significant, amounting to a record 140 million tons of oil equivalent. Renewable energy continued to grow at a rapid pace, with electricity generation from renewable sources other than hydroelectric power increasing by 14.1% in 2016; the increase reached a record high of 53 million barrels of oil equivalent ； Wind power accounted for nearly half of the increase in renewable energy, while solar power contributed one-third of that increase. Asia has surpassed Europe to become the region with the highest generation of renewable energy worldwide, while China has overtaken the United States to become the leader in renewable energy production. In 2016, global hydropower production increased by 27.1 million oil equivalents, representing a growth rate of 2.8%. China saw the largest increase, at 10.9 million oil equivalents, followed by the United States with 3.5 million oil equivalents. Venezuela, on the other hand, experienced a decrease of 3.2 million oil equivalents, the largest decline globally ； In terms of nuclear energy, nuclear power generation increased by 9.3 million oil equivalents in 2016, representing a growth rate of 1.3%; China saw the largest increase, at 9.6 million oil equivalents.