China to cut energy consumption per unit of GDP by 3 pct in 2018

BEIJING, March 5 (Xinhua) -- China aims for a drop of at least 3 percent in energy consumption per unit of GDP and continued reductions in the release of major pollutants in 2018, said a government work report available to the media ahead of the annual parliamentary session Monday.

China's total energy consumption will be capped at 5 billion tonnes of coal equivalent by 2020, according to a government plan for the 2016-2020 period. This will translate into a 15-percent reduction of energy use per unit of GDP by 2020.