Beijing Olympics to boost Chinese energy demand: analysts

LONDON (AFP) - The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will boost China's rampant demand for energy, threatening to push world oil prices beyond current record heights, according to industry analysts.

Crude prices surged last week to strike a record high above 126 dollars per barrel, boosted by tightening supplies, underinvestment in global production and ongoing unrest in key producer Nigeria.

Runaway oil prices were also partly fuelled by "stockpiling in China to prevent shortages ahead of the Olympics," said Lehman Brothers analyst Edward Morse.

Asian economic powerhouse China, the world's second most voracious energy consumer after the United States, stages the Summer Olympics from August 8-24.

Industry experts reckon that China, which enjoys record-breaking economic growth, will need even more crude oil to provide the facilities, transportation and energy supplies that are required to power a successful Olympic Games.

"In the lead-up to the Games you are going to see pretty heavy spending in infrastructure -- building roads, residential property, hotels -- and this is typically energy intensive," said BNP Paribas analyst Harry Tchilinguirian.

Demand for kerosene, or jet fuel, was also expected to rocket as spectators and athletes fly in and out of the Chinese capital city along with untold numbers of tourists.

"The other aspect is increased demand for transport fuel -- jet fuel for getting people there (to Beijing), not just from the outside but also from within China," Tchilinguirian said.

China, the world's fourth-largest economy, grew at a breakneck pace of 11.9 percent in 2007 and chalked up quarterly growth of 10.6 percent in the first three months of 2008.

"China has been spending quite a bit on infrastructure to accompany its record-breaking growth but on top of that, some of this is related to the preparation of the Olympics," Tchilinguirian added.

Philip Andrews-Speed, professor of energy policy at Dundee University, said the Chinese authorities would be desperate to avoid oil shortages during the Games when the world's eyes will be on Beijing.

"They do not want China to be seen to be having shortages of supply of oil products across the country during the Olympics for a matter of image and (this is) tied to social stability because people might get a bit upset.

"They are going to make every effort to make sure that the refineries are operating to the full extent and that there are no blockages to imports," he said.

"They will use ... any reasonable tax incentives like removing taxes in oil imports to make sure there is enough oil in the country during the coming months."

According to the International Energy Agency, China is on course to become the world's biggest energy consuming nation shortly after 2010.

"China is a driver for world oil demand," said Andrews-Speed, adding that "everything is pointing to more pressure on demand."