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Its business success so far has been dramatic: last year it had a $3.3 billion IPO, an earnings increase of 53%, a 33% revenue increase to $6.6bn and an operating profit margin of 45%.

The company has ambitious plans to expand output by 15 million metric tons a year in each year over the next five (it produced 121 metric tons in 2005).

Whilst the company is committed to producing clean-burning coal, which will take care of acid-rain generating sulphur dioxide, it will do little to reduce greenhouse CO2 emissions. Efforts planned so far to turn to more efficient coal-fired power plants or switching to natural gas and nuclear power is not going to make much of a dent in the likely environmental effect of China's demand for coal-based energy.

The country burned 1.9 billion metric tons of coal in 2004 and by 2020 is predicted by the China Coal Industry Development Research Centre to reach the figure of 2.9 billion tons.

"That increment alone will send as much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as 3 billion Ford Expeditions, each driven 15,000 miles a year."

Under the leadership of Chen Biting, China Shenua Energy is planning to globalise and may partner with one of the other major coal multinationals such as Peabody.

Source: Where coal is king
Forbes, July 3 2006
Russell Flannery    
Review by Morice Mendoza