China is revising a law to make it possible to impose harsher punishment on energy lavishment, the government said Sunday, at a time when fast economic growth is unabatedly costing excessive energy resources.

The Financial and Economic Committee of the National People's Congress, or China's top legislature, and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) are jointly making a proposed revision for the Law on Saving Energy resources, which is expected to be completed later this year, an NDRC source told Xinhua.

The law was put into effect eight years ago, but has since banned no projects failing to meet energy-saving requirement. The government is worrying that it is difficult to reach this year's target of reducing energy costs for per unit gross domestic product.

The revised law will feature strengthened enforcement and supervision and include both incentives for saving energies and punitive measures against energy-lavishing behavior, the NDRC said, without giving details.

It will typically target the construction sector, which now accounts for one-third of all energy costs in China. Construction projects that do not meet energy-use demands will be off-limits, the source said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 7, 2006)