This past week, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released a report that labeled China as the new #1 in the world in terms of 能源 (néng yuán – energy) consumption, putting them ahead of the United States. Using data from 2009, the IEA’s report claimed that during the year, China consumed energy equivalent to 2.252 billion tons of oil. In contrast, the US burned through 2.17 billion tons of oil equivalent, giving China the championship belt of energy consumption by roughly 4%. Although it has been expected for quite some time that China would eventually surpass the US in energy use, the move has come much sooner than 预言 (yù yán – predicted). According to the findings of the IEA, this is because the US has, for the past 10 years, jumped far ahead of China in terms of energy efficiency.
With a population almost 5 times that of the US, it should come as no surprise that China, which is developing at break-neck speed, has taken the top spot. It should be noted that the findings of the IEA also stated that the US still uses more energy on a per capita basis. So, basically, while the US has started to improve in terms of how efficiently it uses energy, its citizens still consume more energy than their Chinese counterparts on a daily basis. This comes as no surprise to me. As a citizen of the US living in China, I can clearly see how the Chinese are far more stingy with their energy use than the folks on the other side of the world. In the midst of a scorching hot summer here in Beijing, I still find that most locals are hesitant to turn on the 空调 (kòng tiáo – air conditioning), while it’s not uncommon in the US to leave your fully air conditioned home only to take a spin in your air conditioned car. At the same time, China is putting more and more 车在路上 (chē zài lù shàng – cars on the road), and they are far and away the world’s largest consumer of 煤 (méi – coal), going from a net exporter of coal to the biggest importer of it in just 三年 (sān nián – three years).
An interesting short report about China’s energy use and reforms.
Not surprisingly, China has rejected these findings, with the Xinhua News Agency claiming, “IEA’s data on China’s energy use is unreliable.” China’s National Energy Administration has been quick to point out that China has also surpassed the US as the world’s largest producer of 可再生能源 (kě zài shēng néng yuán – renewable energy).
Typical FOX News commentary – “Like em or hate em (China), you might as well make some money off em.”
So… what does all of this mean for us 老百姓 (lǎo bǎi xìng – everyday people)? Well, there is a lot of debate out there on this topic. Some feel that China’s new status as the #1 consumer of energy will affect everything from the price of 原油 (yuán yóu – crude oil) to the types of cars that are produced. Only time will tell exactly what the implications are, if any. One thing is certain though – the future of the world’s energy consumption and energy policies will be heavily shaped by the actions (or non-actions) of China and the United States, 不管他们喜欢与否 (bù guǎn tā men xǐ huan yǔ fǒu – whether they like it or not).
Some common myths about energy use in China and the US are refuted.
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Sasha is an English teacher, writer, photographer, and videographer from the great state of Michigan. Upon graduating from Michigan State University, he moved to China and spent 5+ years living, working, studying, and traveling there. He also studied Indonesian Language & Culture in Bali for a year. He and his wife run the travel blog Grateful Gypsies, and they're currently trying the digital nomad lifestyle across Latin America.
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