China’s state statistics agency said that the national coal output hit record highs in December. During 2021, XI’s Cabinet continued to encourage miners to ramp up production to ensure sufficient energy supplies in the winter heating season.
China remains the biggest coal miner and consumer globally, produced 384.67 million tonnes of the fossil fuel last month, up 7.2% year-on-year. According to the National Bureau of Statistics’ report, the figures compared with a previous record of 370.84 million tonnes set in November.
As a matter of fact, for the full year of 2021, output touched a record 4.07 b tonnes, up 4.7% on the year 2020 when the pandemic has hit the globe.
Meantime, the Chinese coal traders shrugged off an Indonesian coal export ban as stockpiles at power plants were strong and power demand was set to weaken for the upcoming Lunar New Year holidays.
Coal in China: the perspective trend
Coal inventory at Chinese utilities exceeded 162 million tonnes on Jan. 21, or 21 days usage, about 40 million tonnes higher than the same period last year, the state planner National Development and Reform Commission said on Friday.
Coal supply was guaranteed, the state planner has said, even as coal inventories were “slightly fluctuating” from a record high of 168 million tonnes struck on Dec. 22, it added. They remained above 160 million tonnes, exceeding levels in the prior year.
During the last year, China’s power consumption rose 10.3% year-on-year to 8.31 trillion kilowatt-hours, the National Energy Administration detailed in a separate document on Monday.
