Evaluation of Coal Utilization Efficiency of Regions in China

In this paper, we calculate the coal efficient utilization ratio (CEUR) of 29 regions in China from 1995 to 2006, by applying data envelopment analysis (DEA) based on the regional own production frontier. And three inputs (labor, capital stock and coal utilization amount) and one output (GDP) are chosen for DEA. Results show that, the more developed area is, the higher CEUR is. The eastern, central and western areas have the highest, medium and lowest 1995-2006 average CEUR (77.37%, 53.22% and 43.34%), respectively, which implies eastern area´s coal utilization is the most efficient and western has the lowest efficiency. Chinese government should emphasize particularly on coal utilization efficiency in central and western area. More investment in coal management and introducing advanced technology are the urgent tasks for central and western area to improve coal efficiency and realize sustainable development.