This study identifies a strategy that (1) provides future energy services for Hainan in the least environmentally degrading way, (2) eliminates the need to build significant amounts of new fossil-fueled, electric generating capacity, saving capital to invest in other development projects, (3) lowers the cost that Hainan households and businesses will pay to light their homes and run their industries, (4) reduces the future coal import bill, and (5) improves the prospects for export industries. implementing this strategy will promote economic development and growth in Hainan, improve the standard of living, and preserve to the greatest extent possible Hainan's rich environmental resource base, a key requirement for its tourist industry. The focus of this strategy is to adapt proven policies and techniques for producing and using energy more efficiently to existing conditions in Hainan. This Report applies the principles of integrated resource planning (IRP) and the experiences in other countries to outline a strategy for the Province. The experience is that fuel consumption can be reduced without lessening the ability of consumers, industry, and the government to obtain the energy services that higher use of fuel would otherwise bring. Further, those energy services can be provided with less capital investment than would be necessary if traditional practices were followed. Both of these results have obvious and important development and environmental benefits. In short, consumers have more money available to buy other things; production costs are lowered, improving the ability of firms to compete in international markets; and more capital is available to invest in new machinery and equipment that produces goods and services to use in Hainan or to export to other countries.
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