Markets

China asks oil firms to raise diesel, gas supply

Published December 7, 2011 Updated December 7, 2011 05:02am

The supply of diesel in some regions has been tight for some months and gas demand is peaking in northern China due to heating demand.

The government also called for steady coal supplies in the peak consumption season in winter and urged coal producers and users to stick to their supply contracts, according to the release.

Beijing raised power prices on Dec 1 to help power plants that have incurred hefty losses due to high coal prices.

The NDRC issued the statement following a government meeting on Tuesday to coordinate coal, power, oil and gas demand and supply in the months ahead.

The statement said China should change a situation that allows unlimited energy consumption, and curb excessive development in energy-intensive sectors and in sectors with surplus production capacity.

The government will step up efforts to control overall energy consumption and improve energy utilisation and conversion efficiency, according to the statement.

Copyright Reuters, 2011