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Ridgewood, NJ-based Community Energy Alternatives Inc. became the first American company to establish market presence in China as it settled a joint venture agreement to establish a power plant in the country. Upon approval, the firm will invest $100 million for the planned 300-megawatt coal-fired plant, which will be located in Gansu Province. China heads the international market for power suppliers and utilities.

Rapid economic growth is widening the gap between electric power supply and the demand. China currently has the highest demand for electric power in the world, with the need to increase capacity pegged at 20,000 megawatts annually as demand doubles between 1992 and the year 2000. China will have to spend $115 billion between the year 2000 and 2020 to increase capacity from 300,000 to 800,000 megawatts. Financing will come from soft loans or electric fees paid to plants financed, built and operated by foreign companies. Government has placed a profit cap on the latter option.

Huaneng International Power Development Corp. is gearing to become the first Chinese company to be listed in the New York Stock Exchange. Huaneng is confident that Chinese power will remain a lucrative business as there is very little chance of a oversupply. Among other firms which have signified interest to be listed in the exchange are Shandong Huaneng Corp., Datang Power Plant and Shandong Power Corp.

China's Fuyang region will be able to generate more electricity from its many coal fields mainly because of new technology that uses steam pressure instead of the conventional boilers. The region's thermal power plant located in the province of Anhui will use two 600-megawatt units. The output will not only be greater but quality will likewise be enhanced. Work on the plant is funded by a $2 million loan from the Asian Development Bank.

A report issued by the China State Information Center predicts a 9.9 million metric ton shortfall in oil output for 1995. Analysts believe that the shortfall will increase further to 17 million tons by the end of 1996. This means that China will have to import more oil to satisfy domestic demand, which is being driven by economic growth.

Industry officials predict China's emergence as Asia's largest petroleum products consumer by 1997 with an annual rate of 7%. The country is expected to consume 2.25 billion metric tons of oil by the year 2000. China Petrochemical Industry Corp., which accounts for 90% of the country's total output, produced 68.5 million tons of petroleum products in 1994. Chinese gasoline demand for 1995 is projected at 35 million tons.

Chinese power company Huaneng International Power Development Corp. was able to ink coal-fired generator pacts amounting to almost $900 million in a span of only two days in early Jun. 1995. The deals involved US, British and French companies. The contracts are expected to bridge the gap between China's electricity supply and its phenomenal economic growth.

Northeast Power Group, North China Power Group and Central China Power Group, three of the biggest electricity supply entities in China, are gearing toward massive expansion into the 21st century. Northeast plans to increase its aggregate installed capacity to 88 million kilowatts by 2010 while North China plans to build 17 new coal-run power plants with total capacity of 35.5 million kw through the year 2000. Central China, meanwhile, is aiming for 10 hydropower stations and about 30 thermal plants for a capacity of about 50 million kw by the end of the century.

An energy shortage is seen to hinder China's goal to double its yearly primary aluminum production capacity to 2 million metric tons. According to Naik Corp, a Japanese metals consultant, the aluminum industry may not receive all the energy that it requires to run smelters. The country's aluminum smelters needs 30 billion kilowatt hours of electricity for a production goal of 2 million metric tons yearly by the year 2000.

China is projected to import more oil from the Middle East by the year 2000 because of the country's increased demand for petroleum. The country's requirement for imported crude oil is estimated to reach 1.1 million barrels a day by then. About 90% of these supplies will come from the Middle East. China is also an oil producer, but increased demand has made it an oil importer.

Foster Wheeler Energy Corp has successfully signed a contract worth $157 million with China National Technical Import and Export Corp. The US firm whose parent company is based in Clinton, NJ, is only the second US company to achieve the job. They will be supplying boiler equipments to the Zouxian thermal plant located in Shandong province managed by the Chinese firm. The Zouxian project will be adding two 600,000-kilowatt generators to enhance energy supply.

China will upgrade its energy production resources with a $3 billion budget which will spent on establishing new power plants and modernizing existing ones. Five of these plants will be established in Shenzhen, Guagdong, Heilongjiang, Hubei and Hunan while two plants in Gansu and Xinjiang will be expanded. China's Ministry of Energy Resources reports that total power output for 1992 would increase by 9% to reach 740 billion kilowatt-hours. Aside from thermal plants, China will also develop hydroelectric power plants along the Yellow River.

China will embark on an energy conservation policy that is meant to enhance the use of energy efficient lighting. China intends to improve export competitiveness and increase output of electric lighting sources while taking concrete steps at saving energy. Despite inadequate technology and poor management, energy planners are seeking to form enterprise groups and create factories that could develop various energy-saving products within the period covering 1991-95.