Workers lay solar panels on a roof at Nanjing South Railway Station. China is giving attention to reducing energy consumption in industrial production.(Source:China Daily)

The Chinese government will double its investment in the circular economy this year to 2 billion yuan ($300 million) to support the national policies of energy conservation and emission reduction, a senior official said on Monday.

The figure was provided by He Bingguang, a director-general level official at the department of resource conservation and environmental protection of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

The NDRC will use financial support and tax breaks to draw investment into the circular (recycling) economy, which will benefit companies and society, He said.

Most of the spending will go into the construction of industrial parks, the transformation of urban mining industries, clean production, food waste recycling and staff development, He said.

The major part of the investment will be used in the industrial sector, said Zhou Changyi, director general of the department of energy conservation and resources utilization of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Zhou said eliminating obsolete production capacity and controlling energy-intensive, polluting industries will remain the major tasks in the next five years.

According to He, China achieved much in the energy-conservation sector during the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2006-2010) and the country will step up its efforts to cut carbon emissions and save energy during the current five-year plan.