【英语中国】BP能源消费榜中国仍居榜首

Chinese authorities were quick to dismiss as 'not very reliable' the International Energy Agency's announcement that China was the world's biggest energy consumer last year, ending a century of U.S. dominance.

But the Paris-based body that advises most of the world's biggest economies on energy policy wasn't the first to point out China overtook the U.S. In June, BP released its annual roundup of energy statistics, which also ranked China No. 1.

BP said China, including Hong Kong, used the energy equal to burning 2.199 billion metric tons of oil. That was 19 million tons more than the 2.182 billion tons of oil equivalent used by the U.S.

Regardless of who's right, China's enviably fast-rising living standards for its huge population put it on course to be the biggest consumer, as an op-ed by China's state-run news agency Xinhua noted.

At issue for China is that recognition of its position will put its efforts to secure energy supplies under the glare of the international spotlight. 'We should be on guard with those exaggerated statistics, and what's more, prevent the issue from being politicized,' said Xinhua.

对于国际能源署(IEA)称去年中国跃居全球最大能源消费国、夺取了美国保持一个多世纪的头把交椅的说法，中国有关部门迅速加以否认，称其“并不可信”。

Reuters不过，国际能源署并非第一个指出中国超过美国的机构。6月份，英国石油公司(BP)公布了年度能源统计数据小艾摘要，其中也将中国排在了第一。国际能源署位于巴黎，就能源政策为世界大部分主要经济体提供咨询。

英国石油公司说，中国（含香港特别行政区）消费了21.99亿吨油当量的能源。这比美国所消费的21.82亿吨油当量的能源多出了1,900万吨油当量。

无论谁是正确的，正如新华社的一篇评论文章中所说的，中国令人羡慕的、迅速提高的居民生活水平使之有望成为最大的能源消费国。

对于中国来说，有个问题是，承认自己是全球最大能源消费国将使其确保能源供应的努力成为国际关注的焦点。新华社说，“我们需要警惕的是不顾客观事实的夸大数据，需要防止的是把经济问题变为政治问题”。