Policy Developments Highlight China’s Efforts to Balance Energy Security and Carbon Neutrality Goals in the Energy Sector

8 May 2023 — In 2020, China announced the goals to peak its carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. Subsequently, in 2021 and 2022, severe power shortage incidents heightened China’s concerns over energy security. China has since issued a number of policy documents aiming to address the balance between energy security and its carbon emissions and carbon neutrality goals. This briefing aims to assist IGSD partners and climate champions in understanding the dynamics of reaching China’s climate goals.

In February 2023, the National Energy Administration issued the Action Plan for Accelerating the Integrated Development of Oil and Gas Exploration with New Energy (2023-2025). This Action Plan includes the goal of cumulatively increasing, by 2025, fossil gas production by about 3 billion cubic meters and fossil crude oil production by over 2 million tonnes. At the same time, the Action Plan also calls upon oil and gas companies to use more renewable energy during extraction and accelerate their renewable energy generation to help achieve China’s carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals. Notably, the Action Plan does not specify whether methane intensity and emissions controls will be considered in the fossil oil and gas production.

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