Efforts to reduce the carbon intensity of the Chinese economy appear to be paying off, after official figures released yesterday claimed that energy consumption per unit of GDP fell 3.66 per cent in 2007 compared to the previous year.

The government said that the improvements, which show an acceleration in the trend that saw energy consumption per unit of GDP fall 1.79 per cent in 2006, were a result of direct efforts to enhance energy efficiency and cut pollution.

Its claims were supported by figures showing that Beijing, which has been subject to a major energy efficiency and environmental programme ahead of the coming Olympics, recorded the most impressive gains with energy use per unit of GDP falling over six per cent during 2007.

The energy intensity of the Chinese economy remains poor compared to more developed nations – energy consumption per unit of GDP is still many times higher than that in the US and Europe. However, the government said it remained committed to closing large numbers of small scale energy intensive coal power plants as it seeks to meet targets to reduce energy consumption per unit of GDP by 20 per cent and major pollutant emission by 10 per cent by 2010 based on 2005 levels.

The commercial, as well as environmental, case for enhancing the country's energy efficiency was also highlighted this week, when the government announced that 27 of the country's largest lead and zinc smelters had agreed to cut production by 10 per cent between July and September, in a move designed to help relieve electricity shortages.

The Shanghai Nonferrous Metals Trade Association said in a statement that companies should use the cut in production, which follows a similar commitment from China's aluminium smelters, to take "further measures" to enhance energy efficiency.

In related news, environmental protection officials in Beijing said today that businesses in the city are ready to suspend operation to help cut pollution during the upcoming Olympic Games.

Zheng Jiang, Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau deputy director, told Chinese news agency Xinhua that over 150 companies in the smelting, building materials and petrochemical sectors had worked out a detailed production suspension or emission cut plan and were ready to halt operations if required.