Experts suggest to strengthen diversification of energy supply

At the eighth annual meeting of the Global Energy Security Think Tank Forum held on September 17, experts pointed out that, while the global energy demand remained at a high level, maintaining a certain level of energy self-sufficiency for a larger economy like China, while strengthening the diversification of energy supply, would help to ensure energy security.

China's energy transformation under the new situation (hereinafter referred to as the report) issued by the Institute of Quantitative Economics and Technological Economics of the Academy of Social Sciences at its annual meeting suggests that under the situation of increasing total energy consumption and increasing import dependence in China, we should make full use of energy resources in the international market and import more from diversified channels. A variety of energy products, including petroleum, natural gas, coal and other traditional fossil energy, as well as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), methanol and other chemical energy products. The report points out that the orderly development of natural gas will contribute to the realization of the goals of environmental protection and blue sky defense. By vigorously developing unconventional gas sources such as coalbed methane, dense gas and shale gas, the self-sufficiency level of natural gas in China can be effectively improved. In addition, promoting the diversification of natural gas import channels will also help to ensure China's energy security. Liu Qiang, director of the Energy Research Department of the Institute of Quantitative Economics and Technological Economics, Academy of Social Sciences, said that it was very important for China to maintain a certain level of energy self-sufficiency when the overall level of global energy demand was already high, which would also provide a layer of protection for the domestic economy.

The report considers that China's energy self-sufficiency is still inseparable from the use of coal. Improving the material efficiency and energy efficiency of fossil energy such as coal and petroleum, and strengthening industrial and building energy conservation are also helpful to ensure China's energy security. Ni Weidou, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and professor of Tsinghua University, also said that China's abundant coal resources reserves, further improving the level of clean utilization of coal, improving the efficiency of utilization of coal and electricity resources, and reducing the level of coal and electricity emissions are conducive to ensuring China's energy security and achieving sustainable environmental development. In order to meet the huge domestic energy demand and realize the sustainable development of the environment, China's energy structure is undergoing a substantial adjustment, from the energy structure with coal as the main body to the energy structure with comprehensive and balanced development of coal, oil, natural gas, hydropower, nuclear power and renewable energy. Gao Peiyong, Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that the current relatively abundant international oil and gas supply is conducive to China's optimization of energy supply structure; increased investment in exploration and development of domestic oil and gas resources, the emergence of new reserves, the increase of natural gas supply brings about the optimization and adjustment of energy structure; and the rapid cost of renewable energy. The technology of power generation and grid connection is becoming more and more mature, and the application of big data technology is becoming more and more extensive. These new changes and technological innovations provide better conditions for building efficient energy systems.