China, the most coal-reliant country in the world, will face a few hard decades to raise its clean energy to 50 percent by 2050 but the prospects are good, a senior climate change expert said on Monday.
Among a diversified package of energy solutions, nuclear power will play a key role in the long term, which is expected to account for about 15 percent of China's energy consumption by 2050, according to Du Xiangwan, chairman of China's National Climate Change Expert Commission.
"The country will face a critical transformation period in the next 20 to 40 years," Du said in an exclusive interview with China Daily.
China must explore multiple solutions in addressing its energy issues, given the vast size and population of the country, he said.
China remains the largest coal consumer in the world, with more than 70 percent of its consumption dependent on coal.
China's GDP growth has held steady at about 10 percent for many years - in which 3 to 4 percent was created at the expense of the environment, he said.
"It's the country's urgent inner demands to transfer to clean energies (and) we need economic growth, but at a high-quality level," Du said.
Although this undertaking would be long and strenuous, Du said he was "optimistic".
Nuclear energy is deemed as one of the most important solutions for China's energy challenges. More at:
http://www.china.org.cn/environment/UN_Cancun_conference/2010-12/08/content_21500227.htm
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