Electricity poles near the Great Wall of China by Nat W on Flikr.
How will the unrelenting demand for energy in China be met? And where does Australia fit in the picture? Frank Jotzo answers these questions in East Asia Forum. The economic rise of Asia brings with it an unprecedented growth in energy use. How that growth in energy demand will be met depends on technology development and policy for climate change and energy security. These choices will profoundly affect the prospects of energy exporters such as Australia. A prudent strategy would not assume that coal will always reign supreme but prepare for a future where demand for coal gives way to gas and zero-carbon energy sources. China has had the fastest growing energy system among the Asian powerhouses, doubling domestic energy use between 2002 and 2010, and trebling it since 1990. Coal has made up the bulk of the increase, accounting for 70 per cent of incremental energy use in China since 1990, and half in India.
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