Why didn't the oil crisis affect China?: 20 years ago, emergency reserves were built, electricity was used in new ways; It is also not dependent on chemicals

Amid rising tensions in West Asia, where many countries are facing an energy crisis, its impact on China is less visible than the rest of the world. The reason for this is that China had been preparing itself for such situations for many years. China is the world's largest oil buyer, so if there was a disruption in the supply of oil, it should have suffered the most. But China already has a large amount of oil reserves. In addition, China has shifted to an electric-powered system and is also making essential commodities from coal. China gradually changed its energy policy in such a way that it could withstand global supply shocks. The government increased investment in key sectors and made industrial power a part of national security. Along with this, it has also worked rapidly on other ways of generating electricity, such as solar energy, wind energy and hydro power. This is the reason why the demand for petrol and diesel in China is gradually decreasing. China strengthens factories and manufacturing The Chinese government has long believed that strong industry is the true strength of the country. Under this thinking, it has strengthened its factories and manufacturing capacity so much so that it has less to depend on foreign countries. In particular, he paid more attention to areas that were strategically important to him. The government has been giving direct directions on which areas to strengthen so that China does not come under pressure from any Western country. Energy has been the most important part of this entire strategy. Until a few years ago, China was the largest market for petrol-diesel vehicles, but now it has become the largest market for electric vehicles. This means that now a large number of vehicles there are running on electricity instead of oil, which is reducing the dependence on oil. In the 1990s, when China was building many factories, it had to depend on foreign companies to make chemicals. These are the same chemicals that make plastics, rubber, metal parts and many other things. But now China has developed technology that can make many essential chemicals with the help of coal, such as methanol and synthetic ammonia. This technology is not new, but it was also used by Germany during World War II. Now China can run its industry without oil in the same way. Today, a large part of the world is dependent on China for chemical supplies. For example, about three-quarters of the world's polyester and nylon are made in China. Countries like Vietnam and the Philippines recently sought China's help when they faced an energy crisis. China also said it is ready to work with Southeast Asian countries on the issue of energy security. This thinking of China is not new. Around the year 2000, he began to worry that his oil depended on certain sea routes, such as the Malacca Strait. If there is a problem, the supply may be stopped. For the same reason, China started building emergency oil reserves in 2004 and is now steadily increasing it. Even today, China buys 75% of its oil, yet China is not completely safe. China is still the world's largest buyer of oil and gas. Even today, about 75% of its oil needs are met through imports. Although China does not disclose the exact figures of its reserves, its crude oil imports increased by 4.4% in 2025, while consumption increased by 3.6%, according to government data. But in the last few years, China has spent a lot of money on electric vehicles and renewable energy (such as solar and wind). Its impact is now visible. The demand for petrol, diesel and refined oil has been declining for two consecutive years. Experts believe that oil and gas consumption in China has now reached its peak or is starting to stagnate. Despite the fact that the demand for oil in the industry remains unchanged, the demand for oil in China has not completely ended. Its use in the petrochemical industry (plastics, chemicals, etc.) is still growing, so that it can strengthen its supply chain. China's chemical industry grew rapidly because the government invested heavily in it, gave cheap loans, and also prepared universities according to the sector. This momentum accelerated during Xi Jinping's tenure, especially when the U.S.-China trade war broke out in Trump's first term. Experts say Trump's policies forced China to become more self-reliant. In 2019, then-Prime Minister Li Keqiang said China should make chemicals from coal along with electricity to reduce its dependence on oil by sea. This was in contrast to the earlier policy which had an emphasis on reducing the use of coal. In 2020, China developed a new strategy amid Covid and rising tensions with the United States. It was said that the industry of the country will have to develop their technology rapidly so that they are less dependent on foreign countries and the impact of supply chain disruptions is minimised. As a result, the coal-fired chemicals industry grew rapidly in China. In 2020, 155 million tonnes of coal was used to make chemicals, which increased to 276 million tonnes by 2024. In 2025, it increased by another 15%, exceeding the total U.S. coal consumption (230 million tonnes). China says coal is a temporary option for the time being, unless it becomes completely dependent on renewable energy. At the same time, it is also working on a technology in which chemicals can be made from electricity. At present, China is benefiting from it. For example, in the case of nitrogen fertilizer, China produces one-third of the world's production and 80% of it is made from coal. The price of urea has risen by more than 40% in the world since the start of the war in the Middle East, but its price in China remains less than half of the global price. Experts believe that China's position has become stronger in these circumstances. He says that China will see it as a right step towards becoming self-reliant and will move forward in the same direction.