China would mainly rely on domestic resources to satisfy its energy demand, said Jia Qinglin, chairman of the national advisory body, at the 2005 annual conference of the Boao Forum for Asia, which opened in Boao, Hainan Province Saturday.

China also needs to import a proper amount to meet its energy demand, said Jia, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, in response to a question from the participants.

The energy issue is a common concern for Asian countries and also a challenge to China, and the Chinese government attaches great importance to the issue, he said.

China's demand for energy rises steadily with its fast economic growth. However, China is not only a big energy consumer but also a big energy producer, and imports only account for a small part of China's energy supply, Jia said.

Last year China produced 170 million tons of petroleum and more than 1.9 billion tons of coal. By 2020, import would also be a small part of China's energy consumption, he predicted.

Jia said China would give priority to energy conservation and construction of an energy-saving society, while accelerating the adjustment of its energy structure through readjusting the industrial structure and product mix to cut energy demand by a big margin.

China would tap more non-coal energy resources including water resources, oil and gas resources, solar and wind energy while making proper use of nuclear energy. Productivity of coal mines would be improved on the basis of ensuring coal mine safety and reducing environmental pollution, he said.

Clean coal technology and the coal chemical industry would also be developed, especially the industrialization of coal liquefaction.

Jia said China would expand cooperation with other major energy producing and consuming countries and continue to follow the way for sustainable common development.

As for the economic integration of Asia, Jia said China would continue to follow its foreign policy of treating neighbors in a friendly manner and taking them as partners to strengthen communication and cooperation with other Asian nations.

China has been consistent in the view that all kinds of regional cooperation in Asia should follow the principle of openness, tolerance and gradual improvement, he said.

China would give special light to the establishment of a new mechanism of cooperation among Asian nations to promote regional cooperation continuously, Jia said.

(Xinhua News Agency April 24, 2005)