379 / 2022-04-25 11:16:22

Theoretical Proposition and Development Strategy Choice of China’s Coal Mining in the New Era

economic transition,coal mining,theoretical proposition,strategic choice,China

Resource Development and Utilization > 12. Development and Utilization of Low Carbon Coal

With the traditional energy system facing fundamental changes in the context of carbon neutrality, and China's energy demand still on the rise, how to determine a reasonable scale of coal mining and sustainable mining methods has become an urgent issue to be resolved. Taking the unbalanced situation in coal mining and utilization as the starting point, we put forward the theoretical proposition with China’s characteristics in the new era, and give the strategic choice of the development of coal industry by comprehensively weighing the analysis and judgment of economics and sociology. The results show that: (1)Though the coal mining and utilization have made great contributions to the world economic growth, the tremendous price of resources and environment pollutions was paid. Entering the new era, China’s coal mining shows the imbalance of resource production breaking through the “scientific boundary line”, mining area environment approaching the “ecological bottom line” and coal mine accidents crossing the “main line of harmony”. (2) According to the theoretical proposition analysis, the unbalance of coal mining in China is mainly caused by management failure and market failure. On the basis, three types of coal mining are distinguished, i.e., the optimal contributive mining in the process of economic growth, risky mining that caused by market failure, and disastrous mining caused by excessive government intervention and exclusion of market mechanism. (3) For the development strategy selection, we suggest that the primary mission is to eliminate catastrophic mining as soon as possible through the reform of property rights system and innovation of management system and mechanism. In addition, we also should focus on increasing the investment of science and technology in the coal industry to improve the safety of risky coal mining and provide safe and stable energy security for the economic development. The research results in this study will provide a newly theoretical basis and decision-making reference  to innovate energy policies, achieve contributive mining and reduce coal mining imbalance in China’s new era.