Cabinet approves energy control target

The State Council, China's cabinet, approved an energy consumption control target on Wednesday as part of the country's efforts to correct overuse and foster greener growth.

The government aims to keep total energy consumption below 4 billion metric tons of standard coal equivalent by 2015, with electricity consumption below 6.15 trillion kWh, according to a statement released after a State Council meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao.

To meet the target, average annual energy consumption growth should be controlled at around 4.3 percent between 2011 and 2015, lower than the 6.6 percent annual increase realized between 2006 and 2010.