China’s Coal and Gas Output Climb to Records But Steel Falls

(Bloomberg) -- China posted record production in 2024 for commodities including coal, gas and aluminum. Steel output dropped, although it held above 1 billion tons for a fifth consecutive year.

The figures from the statistics bureau on Friday reflect the ongoing importance of energy security to the policy agenda, and China’s desire to cut its reliance on fossil fuel imports. But they also show how the old economy is being forced to shrink, as Beijing seeks to promote greener industries to replace property and state-led investment as the main engines of growth.  

For all of China’s massive buildout of renewable power, coal remains its mainstay fuel. Production in 2024 rose 1.3% to 4.76 billion tons, and another increase is likely this year. Cleaner-burning natural gas surged 6.2% to 246 billion cubic meters, while crude oil output rose 1.8% to 213 million tons, the second-highest total in history.

Oil processing, however, is an industry in decline as the Chinese economy slows and gets greener, cutting demand for fuels like gasoline and diesel. Refiners saw output fall 1.6% to 708 million tons.

Aluminum is one of the metals benefiting from green demand, with output rising 4.6% to 44 million tons. Growth is likely to ease this year as the government’s 45-million-ton annual capacity cap puts limits on smelters. 

The steel industry, however, can’t shake the impact of the yearslong crisis in Chinese real estate, historically its chief pillar of demand. Production fell 1.7% to just over 1 billion tons in 2024 and a further contraction is likely this year as consumption keeps falling. 

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