China to invest heavily on energy efficiency

China plans to invest US$193 billion to make its buildings more energy efficient and prevent the burning of hundreds of millions of tons of polluting coal. Vice Minister of Construction Qiu Baoxing said half the new buildings in the world between now and 2020 will go up in China, the Wall Street Journal reported, and this massive growth has led to a huge surge in the use of coal and oil. China's cities are among the most polluted in the world with the construction industry accounting for 27% of China's energy use. Qiu said new buildings would have to cut their energy use in half while buildings still in the planning stages in the four main municipalities would have to be 65% more efficient. A recent survey of 600 construction projects found 10% failed to meet energy-efficiency standards, Qiu said. Their licenses were revoked.