New Delhi, November 26:

China is targeting quadrupling its GDP by 2020 by stepping up domestic coal and oil production, Chinese ambassador Sun Yuxi said yesterday. “Coal will still remain the major energy in China. To achieve the general goal of quadrupling the GDP by 2020, the Chinese government will put energy in a strategically important position in economic development,” Sun said. He was addressing the second Asian energy roundtable with Central and North Asian oil and gas producers and major As-ian oil consuming states. “C-hina will enhance explorat-ion and development of co-al, oil and natural gas, hike proven reserves, domestic production volume and maintain leading position of domestic resources supply.” Expected to record over nine per cent economic gro-wth this year, China’s dema-nd for oil is expected to tou-ch 331 million tonnes in 200-6, up by 6.65 per cent from 2005. Its consumption of pe-trochemical products is expected to be 177 million.