President Hu Jintao
pledged on Thursday to enhance dialogue and cooperation with all
countries to jointly maintain world energy security and
stability.
Delivering a speech entitled "An Open Mind for Win-Win
Cooperation" at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO
Summit in South Korea's southeastern port city of Busan, Hu said
that energy is a global issue, intrinsically linked with world
economic development.
"To achieve balanced and orderly growth in the world economy,
the international community must handle the energy issue well," Hu
said.
The Chinese president arrived in Busan on Thursday to attend the
APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting scheduled for Friday and Saturday.
The main theme of this year's meeting is "Towards One Community:
Meet the Challenge, Make the Change."
The three-day APEC CEO summit, which started here on Thursday
morning, is an annual event that gives business leaders from the
Asia-Pacific region the opportunity to participate in interactive
discussions on regional and global economic and trade issues with
APEC economic leaders, economists, policy makers and fellow
business leaders.
The theme of this year's CEO summit is "Entrepreneurship and
Prosperity: Building a Successful Partnership in the Asia-Pacific
Region."
Since 2004, the surge of oil prices in the international market
has affected world economic growth, growth in the developing
countries in particular, Hu said.
The most critical thing is for all countries to work together
for stability of the world energy market, and to fuel the sustained
growth of the world economy with sufficient, safe, economical and
clean energy resources, Hu added.
It is also important to take a long-term perspective, intensify
energy development, deepen energy cooperation, increase energy
efficiency, and facilitate the development and use of new energy
resources, Hu said.
Hu also briefed the APEC business leaders on China's energy
strategy.
"The core of China's energy strategy has been clearly defined.
We will strengthen policy guidance for energy conservation and high
efficiency, give priority to energy conservation and rely on
domestic resources," Hu said.
"While focusing on developing coal resources, we will develop
diverse energy resources, and put in place a system that supplies
stable, economical and clean energy," he added.
The development of nuclear, wind and bio-power in China has just
started, and there is great potential for future development, Hu
noted.
Although China's demand for energy has increased due to its
steady economic growth, its per capita consumption volume is not
high, Hu pointed out.
In 2004, China's per capita primary energy consumption was the
equivalent of 1.08 tons of oil, or 66 percent of the world average
of 1.63 tons. In the same year, China's net import of crude oil was
117 million tons, accounting for 6.31 percent of crude oil traded
worldwide.
From 1990 through 2004, China, on average, sustained an annual
economic growth rate of 9.3 percent with about 5 percent increase
in annual energy consumption.
"China is a major energy consumer. But it is also a major energy
producer," Hu told the business leaders.
Since the 1990s, China has always met over 90 percent of its
overall energy needs on its own. As a country with coal dominating
its energy structure, China still has huge potential for domestic
supply.
"We have rich coal reserves, and two-thirds of our hydropower
resources remain untapped, Hu added.
Hu also briefed the APEC business leaders on China's energy
conservation.
"We always work to combine energy development with conservation,
and give top priority to conservation," he added.
China has made remarkable achievements in saving energy. In
2004, China's energy consumption per 10,000 RMB yuan (about
US$1,200) GDP dropped by 45 percent compared with 1990.
Hu told the business leaders that China has introduced a mid-
and long-term energy conservation program, with the objective of
saving three percent of energy every year by 2020, or 1.4 billion
tons of standard coal in total savings.
"We will rely on scientific and technological advancement,
encourage the role of market mechanism and economic leverage, and
build up our capability in energy saving, so as to improve energy
conservation and efficiency across all fronts," Hu said.
Hu arrived in Busan on Thursday from the capital of Seoul as
part of his a visit to South Korea.
Among the CEOs present at the summit are Citigroup chairman
William Rhodes, Microsoft Vice President Craig Mundie and Chevron
Managing Director Samuel Snyder, along with top executives from
Toyota, China Unicom and Hong Kong's Li and Fung Ltd.
Since its inception in 1989, APEC has become a formidable
regional forum acting as the primary regional vehicle for promoting
open trade and practical economic and technical cooperation in the
Asia-Pacific region.
APEC accounts for more than one-third of the world's population
(2.6 billion people), about 60 percent of world GDP and nearly half
of world trade.
It represents the most economically dynamic region in the world,
having generated nearly 70 percent of global economic growth in its
first 10 years.
APEC currently has 21 members: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile,
China, China's Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Japan,
Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the
Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, the United
States and Vietnam. The chairmanship rotates among its members,
with South Korea holding the chair this year.
(Xinhua News Agency November 18, 2005)
