New energy needs amended law

A senior national legislator has called for amendments to China's Energy Conservation Law to better align it with new circumstances brought by the rapid expansion of renewable energy and the digital economy.

Xiao Jie, vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature, made the remarks while addressing the ongoing session of the committee on Monday.

The call followed legislative inspections into the implementation of the Energy Conservation Law since its enactment in 1998 and its most recent revision in 2007.

The inspections were conducted by the committee together with standing committees of provincial-level people's congresses, covering 12 regions, including Hebei and Shanxi provinces.

Xiao said China has made notable achievements in promoting energy conservation.

From 2007 to 2024, China's national energy consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP fell by about 43 percent, resulting in cumulative energy savings of roughly 2.3 billion metric tons of standard coal equivalent, he said.

He highlighted particularly strong progress since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012. Since then, China's energy consumption per 10,000 yuan of GDP has dropped by 27.2 percent, making the country one of the fastest globally in reducing energy intensity, he said.

During the same period, China maintained an average annual energy consumption growth rate of 3.3 percent while achieving an average annual economic growth rate of 6.1 percent, he noted.

"These efforts have provided a robust guarantee for sustained and healthy economic and social development, as well as overall social progress in the new era," Xiao said.

However, he also pointed to a number of problems that continue to hinder further progress in energy conservation.

"While the implementation of the Energy Conservation Law has achieved significant results, it is also important to recognize that China's overall energy efficiency remains insufficient," he said.

Challenges persist in areas including public awareness of energy conservation, law enforcement, technology application, industrial development, incentive mechanisms and the institutional framework, he said.

In some regions, he noted, authorities have yet to effectively curb the development of smokestack projects characterized by high energy consumption and emissions.

"These areas are marked by an impulsive drive to invest in such projects, weak regulatory oversight and duplicative construction," Xiao said.

He added that with the rapid development of renewable energy and the gradual establishment of a new energy system, the current Energy Conservation Law and its supporting regulations are struggling to adapt to the swift adjustment of China's energy consumption mix.

The law lacks specific provisions targeting emerging energy-consuming sectors such as information and communications, computing facilities and energy storage, he said.

"In practice, this results in insufficient legal authority and a lack of enforceable mandatory measures to regulate these emerging areas,"Xiao said.

He stressed that the regulatory framework for energy conservation in the development and utilization of new energy sources needs to be established and improved.

During the use of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power, he said, installed capacity has not yet been fully aligned with grid integration capabilities.

The law also does not adequately cover the country's rapidly expanding digital economy, which now ranks second globally and plays an increasingly important role in advancing high-quality development, he said.

With the rapid deployment of computing infrastructure, electricity consumption in the sector has maintained an average annual growth rate of nearly 20 percent during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), exceeding 250 billion kilowatt-hours annually, Xiao said.

"This has made it a major and fast-growing energy-consuming sector, creating an urgent need to establish and improve an energy conservation management system that accommodates the development of emerging industries," he said.

Xiao called for accelerating revisions to the Energy Conservation Law based on in-depth research into key and difficult issues identified during its implementation.

"The suggestions and opinions raised by various parties during the law enforcement inspections should be carefully studied and fully considered," he said.

"It is essential to pool wisdom and strength from all sides to complete the high-quality revision of the Energy Conservation Law."