ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a stylised overview of the energy situation in Asia covering the developments since 1990. The primary energy requirement of the region has grown significantly during this period as China emerged as the second largest global economy while other Asian countries grew economically. High dependence on coal emerges as a special feature of this development, which has allowed the region to maintain a self-sufficiency ratio of 80% since 1990. Most of the countries in the region have reduced their energy intensity but there is significant learning potential from one another in further improving energy efficiency. Growing industrialisation particularly in China has meant that the industrial sector is the leading final energy consumer but the residential sector comes next.
