Waste Not, Want Not
Headline after headline shouts out that China's rapidly increasing demand for energy is taking a heavy toll on the global price of oil. Last winter -- one of the coldest in 20 years -- saw blackouts in more than three-quarters of China's provinces. With a 20-million-kilowatt shortage in electricity supply projected for this year, we can expect more of the same this winter.
Clearly, China faces a pressing situation. Some fear China will soak up the world's supply of energy. China's search for a greater supply will indeed be key to its development. But what many decision-makers in China, from state leaders to factory managers, are now realizing is that while supplying the fast growing economy is important, it is equally important for China to wisely manage how it consumes energy. China should act faster to stem the loss that results from inefficient consumption, and efforts must start where gains will be realized on a massive scale: China's industry.
Energy experts believe that China's industry accounts for a little more than half of its total energy usage. While China has made progress in phasing out inefficient production facilities and in adopting modern technology, a significant number of China's manufacturers -- of steel, paper, chemicals, etc -- still use outdated and inefficient technologies. Jiang Wenran, a professor of political science at the University of Alberta, in Canada, says China spends three times the world average, and seven times Japan's outlay, to produce $1 worth of GDP.
Two technologies in particular could bring fast and significant energy, not to mention financial, savings. The first is variable speed drive, which allows managers to preset the speed of motors in a factory. Motors power most industrial activity and they are the largest draw on energy in most factories.
Take an industrial air conditioning system. Without variable drive technology, the system must turn on and shut off its motors hundreds of times a day as the air temperature moves beyond the thermostat setting. But with a variable speed drive, the system never completely shuts down, it idles. Turning on and off of an industrial air conditioning system uses far more power than just increasing its rate of operation from idle.
The second technology is Power and Energy Management System. This technology gives factory managers the capability to better control when and how their factories consume electricity. They are thus able to control energy demand more efficiently, automatically reduce electricity loads under critical situations and allocate energy costs based on actual usage rather than antiquated measures such as floor space. These systems are used in most factories around the world, but are sadly ignored by many factories across China.
Examples of energy savings that these technologies can provide abound. The Wei Hai Power Plant, a mammoth facility situated along the shore of the Shandong peninsula, installed a drive solution that enabled plant engineers to run electric motors only as needed, resulting in a 45% reduction in energy consumption at the plant.
China is the second largest consumer of energy in the world, but it's still only scratching the surface. The Chinese on a per capita basis presently consume just 10% of the energy Americans use. While China imported 2.4 million barrels of oil a day in 2004, the U.S. Department of Energy says this number will leap to 8.4 million barrels by 2030. Should the economy continue to expand at the rate it has been growing in recent years, satisfying China's demand for energy will become a grave challenge for us all. It is clear that China needs an even wider adoption of energy saving technology; more efficient consumption will have a hugely positive impact on China's, as well as the rest of the world's, energy situation.
Mr. Summerville is Asia Pacific President of Rockwell Automation.
俭则不匮
报纸上连篇累牍，大字标题层出不穷，都把全球石油价格的暴涨归因于中国能源需求的激增。去年冬季－－二十年来最寒冷的冬季之一－－中国超过四分之三的省份都不得不拉闸限电。据估计，今年中国电力短缺高达2,000万千瓦，可以预见今年冬季限电的省份只会更多。
显然，中国面临著相当紧迫的局面。有些人担心中国会吸尽全球的能源供应。的确，中国四处搜寻更多能源供应对经济的未来发展至关重要。但是，从国家领导人到企业经理在内的各级决策者都意识到，虽然为飞速发展的经济提供充足的能源供应很重要，但有效管理合理消费能源也同样重要。中国应该迅速采取行动，减少因低效消费而导致的大量浪费现象，推广节能措施的努力必须从中国工业抓起，此举可以创造巨大的经济效益。
能源专家们认为，中国工业的能源消耗占全国总消费的一半以上。虽然中国已经在更新低效生产设备，采用现代技术方面取得了一定的进展，但在钢铁、造纸、化工等行业里面仍有不少的中国企业依然使用著过时而且低效的生产技术。加拿大阿伯达大学(University of Alberta)政治学教授姜闻然说，中国每创造1美元的国内生产总值(GDP)所消耗的能源是世界平均水平的三倍，是日本的七倍。
有两项新技术尤其能帮助中国迅速显著地节省能源，更不用说相应而至的资金节约了。第一项就是变速驱动技术，工厂经理可以预设马达的速度。绝大多数的工业活动都靠马达提供动力，马达也就成为大多数工厂主要的能耗源头。
以工业用空调系统为例，如果不用变速电机，一旦室内温度偏离了预设区间，空调电机就会在一天之内数百次启动和关闭。但如果安装一套变速电机，空调系统就不会彻底关闭，而是处于待机状态。这样，一旦需要启动，所需能源就大大低于彻底关闭后的再启动。
第二项技术是电力和能源管理系统(Power and Energy Management System)。这项技术能让工厂经理更好地管理厂区何时以及如何消耗电力。这样就能更有效地控制能源需求，在紧急状态下自动减少用电负荷，根据实际用量分配能源成本，而不是通过厂区面积等估算指标来衡量。全球各地的大部分厂家都已经采用了这两项技术，但在中国还很少见。
这些节能技术效果如何的例子数不胜数，威海电厂(Wei Hai Power Plant)就是一例。这个位于山东半岛沿岸的庞大电厂安装了一套变速驱动系统，电厂工程师们可以只在必要时刻启动电力马达，全厂因此节能45%。
中国是全球第二大能源消耗国，但这只是表面现象。按人均计算，中国的能源消耗只有美国的10%。美国能源部(Department of Energy)数据显示，2004年中国日进口原油240万桶，预计2030年之前激增至840万桶。如果中国经济按照最近几年的速度继续扩张，满足中国的能源需求将给全球带来巨大挑战。很显然，中国需要更大规模地普及节能技术；更有效的能源消耗不但会在中国产生巨大的效益，也会给全世界带来极大的好处。
（本文作者夏明伟(Scott Summerville)是罗克韦尔自动化公司(Rockwell Automation)亚太区总裁。）
