China:

Sinopec Seeks to Commercialize Geothermal Energy (South China Morning Post)

(Courtesy CIA.gov)

China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) the nation's second-largest oil and gas producer, is seeking to commercialize geothermal energy after spending about 1 billion yuan (HK$1.26 billion) in the past few years to develop more than 10 pilot projects on the mainland.

Zhou Zongying, a researcher at Sinopec Star Petroleum - China Petrochemical's geothermal energy development arm - said the renewable energy had good potential to partially replace coal-fired heat and electricity generation in big cities.

"So far, geothermal energy's development has been limited by the high initial investment required, but as more local governments are imposing restrictions on coal-fired heat and power generation, geothermal energy will have more room for development," Zhou said at the sidelines of the China Mining conference.

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