The State Council approves a blue print for renewable energy

The Chinese government says its dedicated towards saving energy and protecting the environment. The State Council has approved a plan requesting energy-generating companies to product a certain proportion of renewable energy.

Developing renewable energy is part of the government's master plan to achieve its environmental targets.

Under the plan, the country's big fossil-fuel power stations will have to convert at least five percent of its generators into non-fossil fuel generators by 2010. The proportion of non-fossil-fuel generators in these power stations would need to double to 10 percent by the year 2020. The government limit production on enterprises which can not meet the standard.

Shi Lishan, official of National Development & Reform Commission said:"The quota system will urge power and electricity-generating enterprises to produce and sell more renewable energy, expanding the country's renewable resources market."

Renewable energy mainly contains wind-energy, solar-energy and biofuels. It's estimated that currently China can produce renewable energy in the equivalent amount of over seven billion tons of standard coal each year, almost tripling the annual output of coal. At the country's first national plan on climate change, the country confirmed its commitment to increase its proportion of renewable energy from less than seven percent at the moment, to 10 percent by 2010, and 16 percent by 2020.