China launches national energy-saving week

HANGZHOU -- A nationwide energy-saving week was launched Monday by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Zhejiang provincial government in Hangzhou.

During the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020) period, China's energy consumption per unit of GDP has declined 11.35 percent and the total energy consumption in 2018 was 4.64 billion tonnes of standard coal, said Zhang Yong, deputy head of NDRC.

The Green High-efficiency Refrigeration Action Plan and the second batch of the international "best energy-saving technology and best energy-saving practice" list was announced at the launch ceremony.

China is the biggest country in terms of producing, consuming and exporting refrigeration products in the world. The annual production value of China's refrigeration industry reached 800 billion yuan ($116.04 billion), creating 3 million job opportunities.

The action plan has set the tone for the development of the refrigeration industry, aiming to expand the market share of green high-efficiency refrigeration products to save the annual power consumption by 100 billion kilowatt-hours by 2022, with a long-term goal of saving 400 billion kWh annually by 2030.

During the campaign themed "prioritizing energy-saving in green development," local governments will summarize the models and experience of regional energy-saving projects and guide the public to actively practice green lifestyles.

The launch campaign marked the 29th anniversary of organizing the national energy-saving week since 1991.