China's target of cutting the amount of energy used per unit of GDP by 16 percent from 2011 to 2015 will hopefully be met if the country adopts a balanced economic strategy that highlights both growth and sustainability.

A major energy consumer, China has made relentless efforts to cut energy use while contributing greatly to global economic growth. Its energy use per unit of GDP fell by 19.1 percent in the 2006 to 2010 period, when its economic scale expanded by almost 90 percent.

The momentum of reducing energy use may be carried over into the coming years thanks to the country's continual implementation of energy-saving policies and its slowing pace of economic expansion.