BEIJING, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- China National Petroleum Corp., the world's third-biggest oil company, plans to build 23 new gas storage facilities and expand 10 existing ones by 2030, with working gas capacity exceeding 15 billion cubic meters, the company said Sunday.
The move aims to meet the increasing demand for gas in the world's second-largest economy, following a harsh winter that saw a supply squeeze, partly due to storage shortfalls.
The move also comes amid the country's efforts to tackle environmental pollution.
China has been promoting efficient, large-scale use of natural gas in the industrial fuel, gas-fired power and transport sectors.
The country aims to make natural gas consumption account for around 10 percent of the country's energy mix by 2020 and 15 percent by 2030.
China's natural gas consumption surged in 2018, rising 18.1 percent to 280.3 billion cubic meters, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.
The growth accelerated from a rise of 15.3 percent registered in 2017.
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