- China is not the biggest oil consumer in the world, that
prize goes to America, nor is it the biggest importer - which is also the
USA.
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- What China outdoes the rest of the world at is the growth
of its appetite.
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- Ten years ago China imported no oil at all. Last year
it overtook Japan to become the world's second biggest importer.
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- Its thirst continues to grow. Imports are expected to
rise another 40% this year.
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- For the international oil market it has all come as something
of a shock.
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- Car mania
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- The reasons are not hard to find.
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- The BBC Beijing bureau overlooks the city's second ring
road.
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- Ten years ago, the road was devoid of traffic, the odd
bus, a few taxis, and lots and lots of bicycles. Today it is gridlock.
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- At five in the afternoon it is more like a six lane parking
lot.
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- In the last few year, the Chinese have taken to cars
with alacrity.
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- Beijing now has more than two million private cars.
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- Many are small hatchbacks, but there are a growing number
of hulking gas guzzling sports utility vehicles. Even the Hummer has made
it to the streets of Beijing.
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- Reserves
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- Then there is the problem of supply.
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- In the 1950s, China discovered massive oil reserves in
the far north of the country near the border with Siberia.
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- For 40 years the Da Qing oil field has kept China self
sufficient.
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- But just as China's demand for oil is surging, the pumps
on the Da Qing oil field are starting to splutter.
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- The search for oil has become frantic.
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- In the deserts of China's far west, teams of oil men
have been searching for more than a decade, but so far nothing.
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- Further afield
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- In the South China Sea, exploration rigs have been test
drilling for even longer. They have found quite a lot of gas, but so far
no big new finds.
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- China has tried to buy up oil fields in central Asia
with mixed results.
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- It is trying to persuade the Russians to build a pipeline
from Siberia to keep the Da Qing oil refineries pumping, but the Japanese
are also competing for that pipeline deal.
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- The result is that China is facing an energy shortage.
Even its massive coal supplies cannot keep up with demand.
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- Outage
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- In the factories of east China this summer the lights
have been going out.
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- In one Taiwanese owned factory they say they lose their
power supply for at least two days a week, and every night.
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- The factory has installed four huge diesel generators
to keep production going, but the generators need fuel too.
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- The only people who seem happy are China's shipbuilders.
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- On the slipways of Shanghai and Guangzhou, armies of
welders are assembling a fleet of new ships to bring energy and materials
to China, iron ore and natural gas from Australia, and oil from anywhere
China can get it.
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- China is negotiating with Sudan and Nigeria, Russia and
Iran.
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- Only one thing seems certain, China's appetite for oil
shows no sign of slowing.
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- Today China has 10 million private cars - by 2020 that
number will be 120 million.
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- © BBC MMIV http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3701486.stm
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