China rejected a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) saying the nation surpassed the United States last year to become the world’s largest energy consumer, claiming its calculations are “unreliable.” The Paris-based agency said China’s 2009 consumption of energy sources was equal to 2.25 billion tons of oil, compared to 2.17 billion tons used that year by the U.S. Per capita, however the U.S. still consumes five times more energy than China, IEA Chief Economist Fatih Birol said. “The IEA’s data on China’s energy use is unreliable,” Zhou Xi’an of the National Energy Administration (NEA), said at a press conference in Beijing. China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in February that China’s energy consumption last year stood at the equivalent of 3.1 billion tons of standard coal, which was equal to 2.13 billion tons of oil. Zhou noted the IEA lacked understanding about China’s relentless efforts to cut energy use and emissions, notably the country’s aggressive expansion of new energy sources. China will focus on using more non-fossil fuels and cutting carbon emissions over the next five years, the Shanghai Daily reports.

“China’s industrial output may grow more than 11% this year,” according to Zhu Hongren, Spokesman for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). Industrial production in China grew 17.6% year on year in the first six months of this year, up 10.6 percentage points from the pace a year ago. Sales of manufactured goods produced in China jumped 34.9% from a year earlier — 86.9% of manufactured goods produced in China were sold in the country. Manufacturing output accelerated 13.7% from a year earlier in June, moderating from the increase of 16.5% in May and 17.8% in April. The Chinese economy is unlikely to experience a “double dip” in the second half of the year, despite the recent significant slowdown of growth, according to MIIT. Slower GDP growth is “appropriate and will help the country to upgrade the structure of its economy”, MIIT Spokesman Zhu Hongren said, but he admitted the economy faces many difficulties, such as fluctuating energy prices in the first half of the year, rising labor costs and greater difficulty for small and medium-sized enterprises to access financing, especially for exporters. The ministry said the revival of the world economy was unstable, raising questions about the robustness of China’s export recovery. “While external demand is on the mend, there still exist some uncertainties in the fast rebound of exports due to the weak foundation of the world economy,” the ministry said in a statement.

Bright Dairy and Food Co plans to buy a 51% stake in New Zealand milk processor Synlait Milk for CNY382 million. If completed, it would be the biggest overseas acquisition in China’s dairy industry. Shanghai-based Bright Dairy is China’s third-largest dairy producer. The deal would ensure the company a stable raw material supply. Synlait is seeking funds to build a second plant and hopes to expand in Asian markets. Synlait, 22.5% owned by Japan’s Mitsui, will separately keep 100% ownership of its dairy farms.

The Ministry of Transport said that an explosion of oil pipelines in Dalian was caused by improper operations carried out by port workers, contradicting an initial statement which blamed the crew of a tanker. The explosion spilled an estimated 1,500 tons of crude into some 430 square kilometers of seawater. A PetroChina executive expected the port to be closed for at least a week. Dalian sent 800 vessels to clean up the spill and the number is expected to increase to 1,000. Authorities built 9,000 meters of floating fences to prevent oil spreading, and threw 3.7 tons of felt and 22 tons of neutralizing chemicals onto the water’s surface to help absorb the oil. Dalian officials said the clean-up would take about a week, but an official from the State Oceanic Administration said it would take much longer. Professor Yan Jienian of the China University of Petroleum expected the clean-up could take three to five months. A total of 44 vessels scheduled to anchor at the Xingang port were redirected to a nearby port. The livelihoods of thousands of fishermen in Dalian have been threatened by the oil spill and few tourists have visited Dalian’s beaches since the explosion. Chinese authorities are trying to prevent the oil spill from reaching international waters. China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) announced that a key pipeline had resumed operations after the  explosion caused the country’s largest reported oil spill. The pipeline is now pumping 45,000 tons of crude oil a day from part of China’s strategic oil reserves. The State Administration of Work Safety said improper desulfurizer injections performed by Shanghai-based Q.PRO Inspection and Technical Service Co caused the July 16 explosion.

An 82,226-square-meter plot of land designated for residential use in Shanghai’s Zhabei district became the city’s first to sell at its starting price this year. Per gross floor area (GFA) the plot fetched CNY1.579 billion or about CNY12,000 per square meter. The plot attracted few bidders at the auction. New homes in the neighborhood sell for as much as CNY28,500 per sq m. In the first half, plots auctioned for residential use sold for an average of 91% above the asking price.