Inefficient energy exploitation has wasted much of China's fuel resources and experts say the combustible gas China wastes every year is eight times the capacity of its ambitious west-to-east gas transmission project.

"In 2004 alone, at least 14 billion cubic meters of gas went down the drain at collieries across the nation," said Liu Wenge, a coal-bed gas specialist with the China Coal Information Institute," compared with the 12 billion cub meters transmitted by China's west-to-east gas pipeline every year."

The pipeline, designed to transmit natural gas from the gas-rich western regions to the energy-thirsty east, runs through Xinjiang, Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu, Shanghai and Zhejiang. The project became operational in October 2004.

In addition to the mining industry, fuel waste is reported also in the coking sector, as coke ovens are emanating 76 billion cubic meters of combustible gas every year, at least 20 billion cubic meters of which is wasted, the Chinese Academy of Engineering has said in a report.

Blast furnaces and converters produce another 320 billion cubic meters of gas every year, at least 20 percent of which is down the drain, the report said.

Only a few leading steel makers including the Baoshan and Wuhaniron and steel companies have worked to recycle the "exhaust gas", it said.

"It's a long way to go," said Dai Yande, vice director of the energy institute of the National Reform and Development Commission. "We've also got to take into consideration the rich 'associated gas' resources, such as methane and other combustible gas produced in mining and smelting processes."

Presently less than 1 percent of these associated gas resources is being used in China, according to Hu Xuehao, a senior engineer with the China Electric Power Research Institute.

Inadequate energy supply has posed a bottleneck in China's economic and social development, said Dai Yande. "If we could exploit and consume fuel resources in a more efficient and rational manner, we'd be able to ease the energy crisis, yield more economic returns as well as to better our environment and improve workplace safety."

Experts say the easiest and most practical way to do that will be to generate electricity with combustible gas. "This will bring about at least 120 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year, six percent of all that was generated across China in 2003."

"It's easy from the technical perspective, but how to incorporate so many businesses in the power network remains a problem," said Liu Wenge, a specialist from the China Coal Information Institute. "Domestic power companies are not keen on the idea, partly because it would be complicated and costly to expand the network."

On the other hand, the government needs to make new policies encouraging businesses to efficiently use combustible gas. "The government may consider rewarding companies that exploit coal-bed gas or generate electricity with combustible gas," said Liu.

(Xinhua News Agency December 10, 2005)