China’s growing energy demand – some international implications

China’s growing energy import dependence makes the economy more vulnerable to global energy market instability.  This is how the US felt after the Arab oil embargo.  Today, the US and China have reversed places.  China is now the world’s largest energy consumer and the country most dependent on energy imports, especially from the Middle East, while the US is on the way to becoming energy self-reliant.  How China deals with this will have a significant influence on global energy markets and climate change, and on international relations.  This set of slides examines China’s energy demand, its growing reliance on energy imports and some possible implications for international energy markets and China’s international relations.  The slides were presented to the Oil and Gas Network (NOG) in Stockholm in October 2013.

By: David Robinson