China’s efforts to curb its oil addiction are expected to lead to the country’s demand peaking by 2027.
Beijing has long worried that the US could undermine the Chinese economy by choking off its supply of foreign oil, and has poured investment both into reviving domestic production and electrifying its economy, especially transport.
In a bid to wean itself off foreign imports, it boosted oil output by 13% from 2018 to 2024, while electric vehicles sold in the country went from 6% of the world’s total in 2020 to almost half last year. The International Energy Agency and state oil companies predict that China’s oil use will start to drop within two years, The Wall Street Journal reported, with huge ramifications for global energy markets.
