Research group reports China’s greenhouse emissions rose 2.6% in 2019

A research group has reported China’s greenhouse gas emissions rose 2.6 per cent in 2019 despite a fall in the share of coal in the country’s energy mix, driven by a rise in energy consumption and greater use of oil and gas.

Total greenhouse gas emissions in China last year were estimated at 13.92 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, the Rhodium Group, an independent research firm said according to Reuters Newsagency.

The annual growth rate is slightly lower than the 2010-2019 average of three per cent and well below the average 9.2 per cent increase over 2000-2009, Rhodium said.

China has been looking to cut its reliance on coal in order to fulfill its commitment to cap carbon emissions by about 2030, by promoting gas-fired heating in winter and boosting power consumption from renewable energy.

Although coal’s share of primary energy in China fell by 1.5 percentage points to 57.7 per cent in 2019 from a year earlier, the amount of coal used still rose one per cent as total energy consumption grew 3.3 per cent to 4.86 billion tonnes of standard coal equivalent, according to China’s statistical bureau.

Reuters reports a significant increase in oil and gas consumption accounted for about 60 per cent of the increase in energy carbon dioxide emissions over 2019, Rhodium said.

The share of natural gas in China’s total energy mix has risen to more than eight per cent in 2019 from four per cent in 2010.

For 2020, Rhodium warned that economic stimulus efforts aimed at mitigating the impact of the coronavirus outbreak would create uncertainties around China’s carbon reduction and its fulfillment of climate commitments.

“If Beijing responds with a large property and construction-heavy stimulus package, the resulting increase in cement and steel production could increase carbon intensity,” the group said.