Energy is the driving force for the development of the modern economy, and energy security is directly related to the mainland's economic security and is an important part of national security. At present, there are some problems in the mainland's energy security laws and regulations, such as the lack of a basic energy law, the lack of specialized energy security legislation, and the lack of cohesion between energy strategy, energy planning and energy law. In the new era, the construction of the mainland's energy security system should accelerate the promulgation of the Basic Energy Law, promote special energy security legislation, effectively connect energy strategy, energy planning and energy law, and promote the construction of energy security legislation from decentralized to systematic. Adhere to the implementation of the overall national security concept and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law in the construction of energy security laws and norms, based on the basic, restrictive and strategic characteristics of energy security, in the construction of energy security laws and norms, clarify the principles of energy security legislation, build a systematic and complete energy security legal system, improve the energy security legal system, and continue to develop the theory and system research of energy security rule of law in the new era.
Energy is the blood of the modern economy and the lifeblood of national economic development. Energy security is related to the mainland's economic security and is a strategic issue that the mainland must face for a long time. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core has put forward the "Overall National Security Concept" and "Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law" from the strategic perspective of coordinating the overall strategy of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the great changes in the world unseen in a century, and realizing the long-term peace and stability of the country, emphasizing that "it is necessary to actively promote legislation in important areas such as national security, scientific and technological innovation, public health, biosecurity, ecological civilization, risk prevention, and foreign-related rule of law, and improve the legal system urgently needed for national governance" and "accelerate the formation of a complete legal and normative system" Effectively respond to challenges, prevent risks, and safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests through the rule of law." In the context of the current severe and complex energy situation and security issues facing the mainland, implementing the overall national security concept and Xi Jinping Thought on the rule of law, and accelerating the construction of the mainland's energy security legal and regulatory system are strategic and important topics related to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the overall economic and social development in the new era.
1. Legislative issues on energy security from the perspective of overall national security
(1) The situation and tasks of mainland energy security legislation in the new era
The connotation of "national security" has gradually extended from traditional political, territorial and military security to non-traditional security fields such as economy, culture, science and technology, biology and energy. With the large-scale application of energy resources in the industrial field, energy security issues are becoming increasingly prominent, and the development trend of globalization is facing severe challenges to the continent with high dependence on foreign energy, and energy security has gradually become an important part of national security. "Safety" refers to a state in which there is no danger, no threat, and no accidents. Energy security is to keep a country in a state of no danger, no threat, and no accidents in terms of energy, and to ensure that a country's energy can be guaranteed for civilian and military needs in peacetime and wartime. The connotation of energy security mainly includes two major aspects: on the one hand, the security of energy reserves, a country should have sufficient reserves in major strategic energy resources, and can meet the needs of its own survival and development at stable and reasonable prices; On the other hand, it refers to the security of the international energy environment, and the mainland should establish friendly relations with the International Energy Agency, take effective measures to deal with the energy crisis together with other countries according to the international energy situation, and at the same time resolve the unfounded suspicion of the international community about the mainland in the energy field and safeguard the mainland's energy security interests. General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed, "Unswervingly implement the overall national security concept, and put the maintenance of national security throughout the entire process of all aspects of the work of the Party and the state." It is necessary to improve the national security system, enhance the ability to safeguard national security, improve the level of public security governance, and improve the social governance system. Therefore, energy security is an important part of the overall national security concept, and the relevant legislative tasks related to energy security are particularly urgent in the new era.
In the new era, mainland energy security should be analyzed and defined from the perspective of overall national security, from the perspectives of essence, system and long-term, especially to reveal the modern prescriptiveness of its new historical stage. Therefore, this paper analyzes that energy security under the overall national security concept in the new era has the following three outstanding characteristics: First, energy security is "fundamental". The development of productive forces in modern society is inseparable from the supply of energy, whether it is material civilization or spiritual civilization, whether it is agriculture, industry, service industry needs energy as the basic support. The level of energy consumption of a country reflects its development level to a certain extent, and in order to build a modern economic society with a high level of material civilization and spiritual civilization from the perspective of overall national security, there must be energy as the backing, so it is believed that energy security is "fundamental". Second, energy security is "restrictive". Since the reform and opening up, the mainland's economy has entered a period of rapid development, and the demand for energy has been expanding, and the problem of insufficient energy supply has always been an important factor restricting the mainland's economic development. In the new era, with the continuous development of mainland society and the continuous improvement of people's living standards, new changes have also taken place in the structure of energy demand, energy demand continues to grow, and the contradiction between supply and demand is prominent. However, in the world, economic fluctuations and oil crises are frequent, and the mainland's energy resources are highly dependent on foreign countries, and the difficulty of using international resources has directly restricted the sustained and healthy development of the mainland's economy and society. Third, energy security is "strategic". The 1974 oil crisis was a wake-up call for energy agencies around the world, and the establishment of national oil reserves by the member countries of the International Energy Agency (IEA) according to uniform standards effectively prevented another crisis of oil supply disruption. At present, the abundant strategic petroleum reserves of some countries have become the cornerstone of stability in their energy security, and play a significant role in maintaining their political stability and economic security. Therefore, the establishment of the mainland's strategic energy reserves will not only play a role in maintaining political stability and economic security in the new era, but also make positive contributions to stabilizing energy prices and maintaining the order of the energy market. Based on the above analysis, from the perspective of overall national security, this paper defines modern energy security as: energy security is in the context of economic globalization, a country can continue to obtain energy supply for its own survival and development at a stable and reasonable price, establish its own strategic energy reserves, and not be constrained by other countries, while optimizing the energy structure, vigorously advocating energy conservation, and taking into account economic benefits and environmental protection.
At the first meeting of the Central National Security Commission, General Secretary Xi Jinping coordinated the overall strategy of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the great changes in the world unseen in a century, based on the situation and tasks of national security in the new era, and put forward the "overall national security concept" for the first time. On June 13, 2014, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out at the sixth meeting of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs that "energy security is an overall and strategic issue related to the country's economic and social development, and is crucial to the country's prosperity and development, the improvement of people's lives, and the long-term stability of society". In the new era, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has undergone a deepening of its understanding of the law governing the development of national security and major theoretical innovations, and has creatively put forward the "overall national security concept", including the connotation and essence of "leadership, status, totality, purpose, road, system, prevention, science and technology, rule of law, and commonality". Prior to this, the analysis and definition of energy security was mostly based on different perspectives. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, it is necessary to put "energy security" under the guiding ideology and framework of the "overall national security concept", and analyze and define it as an important part of national security. According to CNKI's literature search with "overall national security concept" and "energy" as keywords, there is only one relevant literature as of mid-June 2022. The literature on the analysis, definition and special research of "energy security" in the framework and context of "overall national security concept" and as an important part of overall national security is almost blank, and the theoretical framework of energy security from concept to system needs to be established and improved urgently.
(2) The guiding requirements of the overall national security concept for energy security legislation
Implementing the overall national security concept and building legal norms for energy security require us to adhere to the following aspects at the theoretical level: First, adhere to the party's absolute leadership over national energy security. The party's leadership is the fundamental principle and greatest advantage of the development of the national security cause. This is the core and lifeblood of the construction of energy security laws and regulations, and determines the political attributes, fundamental direction and final victory of energy security. The second is to adhere to the path of energy security with Chinese characteristics. The construction of laws and regulations on energy security should adhere to the organic unity of political security, people's security, and the supremacy of national interests, and inject Chinese wisdom and Chinese solutions into them. The third is to adhere to the purpose of energy security and development, which is people's security. The fundamental and foothold of national security maintenance is the safety of people's lives, and energy security should ensure the people's energy supply and protect the ecological environment on which the people depend. Fourth, energy security adheres to the principle of attaching equal importance to development and security. Energy security in the new era is related to the comprehensive development of China's domestic and foreign affairs, to achieve high-quality development, and to promote the enhancement of national security strength with high-quality development, so as to achieve a positive interaction between the two. Fifth, we should persist in safeguarding political security and put political security in the first place, and energy security is the material basis and guarantee for the security of the mainland's political power and system. Sixth, it is necessary to deal with the frequent risks of traditional and non-traditional security in the context of the new era. The construction of energy security should give full play to the role of the national security coordination mechanism, so that the mainland's energy development can be sufficient to deal with traditional and non-traditional risks. Seventh, the front of risk prevention and control. Energy security involves the lifeblood of the mainland's economic and social development, and we must insist on putting the prevention and resolution of national security risks in a prominent position, and strive to discover and deal with hidden dangers that may bring major risks in the bud. Eighth, we should pay attention to international cooperation. We will continue to promote international common security, actively join the International Energy Agency, strengthen international cooperation on energy security, and build an international energy community with a shared future for universal security. Ninth, we will continue to modernize our national security system and capabilities. Reform and innovation should be embodied in all aspects of energy security construction, and the development of energy security should be carried out under the guidance of the rule of law, and science and technology should be used to build a solid foundation for energy security in the mainland. Ten is to pay attention to personnel training. Strengthen the construction of the national security cadre team, further pay attention to the construction of cadres and talents in the field of energy security and rule of law, and use talents to promote development.
In the context of the comprehensive rule of law, the legal and normative system of energy security is the cornerstone and guarantee of the legitimacy and effectiveness of the national energy security system. In October 2014, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) proposed the establishment of a "socialist rule of law system with Chinese characteristics", including a "system of legal norms", and clearly proposed to "build a legal system for national security". Over the years, the theoretical research on energy security has laid a solid guiding theoretical foundation for the construction of the legal and normative system of energy security, and the development of energy security legislation in the new era has also had new requirements from the perspective of the overall national security concept.
(3) Xi Jinping's important exposition on energy security in the new era
Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the national energy security work has been highly valued, has been mentioned to an unprecedented important height, with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core of the Party Central Committee to energy security work creatively put forward a series of new ideas, new assertions, new deployments, systematically answered the new era of energy security of the overall strategic position, political security, risk prevention and control, energy supply, energy consumption, energy technology, energy system reform, international cooperation and a series of major theoretical and practical issues, the formation of Xi Jinping in the new era of energy security important expositionIt has become an important part of the energy security policy of the Communist Party of China in the new era. Xi Jinping's important exposition on energy security in the new era mainly includes the following aspects:
1. The "overall strategy" points out the important status value of energy security
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that "energy security is an overall and strategic issue related to the country's economic and social development, and is crucial to the country's prosperity and development, the improvement of people's lives, and the long-term stability of the society", and stressed that "in today's world, energy issues are the priority areas of national security of all countries, and many international political, economic, diplomatic, military and other activities are making a fuss about energy. "Based on the importance of energy in the new era and the scarcity of energy, the degree of energy mastery has become an important indicator to measure the development space." The "overall strategy theory" elevates energy security to the national overall level and fundamental strategic level, and lays a solid foundation for the purpose, significance and value of the construction of the legal and normative system for energy security.
2. The "Theory of Party Leadership" emphasizes the political nature of energy security
General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed: "We must adhere to the party's absolute leadership over national security work and implement more effective leadership and coordination." "It is necessary to strengthen the party building in the national security system, adhere to the political construction as the guide, educate and guide the national security departments and cadres at all levels to enhance the "four consciousnesses" and strengthen the "four self-confidences", resolutely safeguard the authority of the party central committee and centralized and unified leadership, and build a loyal and reliable national security team. "Energy security is an important part of national security, and strengthening the party's leadership on energy security is of great significance to the development of energy security." It is necessary to strengthen the party's leadership over the 'dual carbon' work, strengthen overall coordination, strictly supervise and assess, and promote the formation of a joint work force. "The leadership of the party highlights the primary attribute of the mainland's energy security development - political, embodies the greatest advantage of the mainland's energy development, and is the political principle and fundamental guarantee for the mainland's energy security development and its rule of law construction.
3. The "risk prevention and control theory" reflects the complex situation faced by energy security and the necessity of preventing and controlling energy risks
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "Although the mainland has made great achievements in energy development, it is also facing challenges such as huge pressure on energy demand, many constraints on energy supply, serious damage to the ecological environment caused by energy production and consumption, and overall backwardness in energy technology. "Energy security is already facing risks and challenges, and in this context, we are required to improve the concept of modern energy security, do a good job in stable energy supply, assess energy security risks in advance and take prevention and control measures.
4. The "supply pluralism theory" emphasizes the importance of establishing a diversified energy supply system
At the sixth meeting of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed: "Based on the domestic diversified supply to ensure security, vigorously promote the clean and efficient use of coal, focus on the development of non-coal energy, form a multi-wheel driven energy supply system of coal, oil, gas, nuclear, new energy and renewable energy, and simultaneously strengthen the construction of energy transmission and distribution networks and reserve facilities." At the same time, it is clearly stated that "solving the core demand for oil and gas is an important task facing us." It is necessary to intensify exploration and development, consolidate the foundation of domestic production, and improve the ability of self-support. The "supply pluralism theory" clarifies that the mainland's energy development must first be based on the domestic market, improve self-protection capabilities, increase the efficient use of energy, and comprehensively improve various energy supply systems, pointing out the direction for the construction of energy security laws.
5. "Green Consumption Theory" emphasizes the purpose of energy consumption, which is energy-saving, low-carbon and environmentally friendly
General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed: "resolutely control the total energy consumption, effectively implement the priority policy of energy conservation, run energy conservation through the whole process of economic and social development and all fields, firmly adjust the industrial structure, attach great importance to urbanization and energy conservation, establish a diligent and thrifty consumption concept, and accelerate the formation of an energy-saving society." At the same time, the following requirements are put forward for green and low-carbon development: "Green and low-carbon development is a complex project and long-term task for the comprehensive transformation of economic and social development. If the gradual withdrawal of traditional energy is not based on the safe and reliable replacement of new energy, it will have an impact on economic development and social stability. Pollution reduction and carbon reduction is an integral part of economic restructuring. "The long-term and complex nature of green energy development also puts forward new requirements for the construction of energy security laws.
6. The "Theory of Technological Upgrading" proposes the necessity of energy technology innovation
General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Based on the national conditions of the mainland, closely follow the new trend of the international energy technology revolution, take green and low-carbon as the direction, promote technological innovation, industrial innovation and business model innovation by classification, and closely integrate with high-tech in other fields, and cultivate energy technology and its related industries into a new growth point that drives the mainland's industrial upgrading." It also proposed that "the accelerated development of energy technology with the goal of clean, efficient and sustainable development will trigger a global energy revolution, and space and marine technology is expanding the new frontier of human survival and development." "Technological innovation is the ultimate foothold of sustainable energy development, and supporting and guiding energy technology innovation and protecting intellectual property rights of energy technology innovation have become new requirements of energy legislation in the new era.
7. The "Theory of Institutional Reform" clarifies the role of the market in determining energy prices
General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed: "Unswervingly promote reform, restore the attributes of energy commodities, build a market structure and market system of effective competition, form a mechanism that mainly determines energy prices by the market, change the government's supervision of energy, and establish and improve the energy rule of law system." "The transformation of government functions is reflected in all aspects, and in the field of energy development, it is required to change the government's supervision of energy and draw clear boundaries of government functions. Energy security legislation can also play a positive role in building an effective market competition system.
8. The "Theory of International Cooperation" emphasizes international cooperation and common development of modern energy security
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "It is necessary to optimize the ability to guarantee overseas resources. It is necessary to make full use of the international and domestic markets and resources in a mutually beneficial and win-win manner, strengthen cooperation with relevant countries in energy resources on the premise of effectively preventing foreign investment risks, and expand the rights and interests of overseas high-quality resources. In a dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he said: "Strengthen the energy strategic partnership, steadily promote major oil and gas cooperation projects, strengthen joint innovation and innovation in major technologies in the energy field, expand new energy cooperation, support each other to ensure energy security, and promote the improvement of the global energy governance system." At the same time, General Secretary Xi Jinping said: "China is ready to work with the international community to strengthen energy cooperation in all aspects, safeguard energy security, respond to climate change, protect the ecological environment, promote sustainable development, and better benefit the people of the world." In the context of the new era of globalization and development of energy security, the "Theory of International Cooperation" is based on the positioning and characteristics of energy security, and puts forward crucial initiatives and guidance from the perspective of international cooperation on energy security, international governance and the improvement of relevant international laws and legislation.
2. Investigation and problem analysis of the current situation of the legal norms of energy security in the mainland
(1) Investigation of the current situation of laws and regulations on energy security in mainland China
The early theoretical research on energy security in mainland China mainly focused on the stability of energy supply and the friendliness of the ecological environment, and the new theory of energy security from the perspective of overall national security in the new era has not yet been systematically formed, and there is a lack of research on the construction of energy security governance system by the rule of law.
Since the reform and opening up, with the increasing demand for energy in the mainland, the energy market has continued to develop, and energy legislation has been established and improved. At present, the mainland has established an energy legal system framework with law as the core and a variety of supporting regulations, rules and policies as the supplement, which has also produced good results in practice. Among them, the energy laws formulated by the National People's Congress and its Standing Committee mainly include the Coal Law, the Electricity Law, the Mineral Resources Law, the Energy Conservation Law, the Renewable Energy Law, the Circular Economy Promotion Law, etc., as well as the corresponding supporting laws and regulations to regulate the energy development and utilization activities in various places. To a certain extent, the energy laws and regulations under this system bring the use and management of energy into the track of the rule of law, and play a fundamental role in promoting the optimization of energy utilization and protecting the ecological environment. However, in the mainland's current energy legal system, the energy law, which is supposed to be the basic law, is still in a state of absence, and the National People's Congress has set up a relevant legislative working group in 2006, until April 2020, when the National Energy Administration finally solicited public comments on the energy law (draft for comments), and the formal law is expected to be reviewed and passed and promulgated in 2022. On the other hand, the energy security law discussed from a national security perspective is still not addressed.
The primary goal of energy security is to ensure economic security, ensure the stability and security of energy supply in important production areas, enhance energy independence, and vigorously develop clean energy to achieve healthy social and economic development. The basic purpose of energy security is to ensure the safety of the people, and the development and utilization of energy will affect human health. At the same time, the use of radioactive energy such as nuclear energy also affects political and military security to a certain extent, and it is necessary to consider national interests when handling special nuclear materials and nuclear energy, improve public defense, and enhance overall national security. International security and energy security rely on each other, international security is conducive to ensuring the stability of oil prices, avoiding the negative impact of frequent fluctuations or continuous rise in oil prices on the mainland, and at the same time, international security can ensure the safety of international energy transportation routes and make the mainland's energy imports a stable supply. In turn, energy security can further guarantee international security. Finally, we should pay special attention to environmental security, the development and utilization of fossil energy will have a negative impact on the ecological environment, how to reasonably and efficiently exploit oil and gas ore resources, how to restore the local landform after exploitation, how to efficiently use resources to achieve energy conservation and environmental protection are the key issues to be considered in the next energy security.
On July 1, 2015, the new National Security Law was promulgated and implemented, although the law does not directly use the expression "energy security", but Article 21 stipulates: "The State shall rationally use and protect resources and energy, effectively control the development of strategic resources and energy, strengthen strategic resources and energy reserves, improve the construction and safety protection measures of strategic channels for resource and energy transportation, strengthen international cooperation in resources and energy, comprehensively improve emergency support capabilities, and ensure the continuous, reliable and effective supply of resources and energy required for economic and social development." This reflects the elevation of the proposition of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China into national law, and also implements a series of important spirits of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on national energy security. The National Security Law involves relevant provisions in the field of energy, which provides an important foundation for the construction of energy security laws and norms, and can be regarded as the basic superior law for the construction of energy security laws and norms.
In December 2020, the Information Office of the State Council released a white paper entitled "China's Energy Development in the New Era", in which General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed a new energy security strategy of "four revolutions and one cooperation", including: promoting the energy consumption revolution and curbing unreasonable energy consumption; Promote the energy supply revolution and establish a diversified supply system; promote the energy technology revolution and drive industrial upgrading; Promote the revolution of the energy system and open up the fast lane of energy development; Strengthen international cooperation in all directions to achieve energy security under open conditions. General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that "the importance of energy and the scarcity of energy resources determine that whoever masters energy may master the development space and the important source of wealth creation." In today's world, energy issues are a priority area of national security, and many international political, economic, diplomatic, military and other activities are making a fuss about energy. ”
To sum up, the construction of the mainland's energy legal system is insufficient, and most of the existing laws belong to specialized legislation for industries, resources and products, which cannot play a role in coordinating the overall situation, and cannot cope with the complex energy situation faced by the mainland. Under the guidance of the overall national security concept, the energy market in the new era is facing a new situation, and energy governance must also transform to rule of law governance.
(2) Analysis of current energy security laws and regulations
1. The Basic Energy Law has not been officially promulgated for a long time
In 2006, the National People's Congress (NPC) set up a special legislative working group on the energy law, but due to various reasons, the progress of the energy law was very slow, and it was not until April 2020 that the draft energy law was again open for public consultation. In 2020, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed a new energy security strategy of "four revolutions and one cooperation", which opened up a new path for China's energy development. In this regard, the mainland legislature has also made a clear response, and in the 2022 legislative work plan of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the energy law is included in the legislative type of "ensuring national economic security". The value orientation of energy legislation has been clearly demonstrated, but the legislation of the basic energy law has yet to be formally promulgated, and the existing specialized legislation is mostly applicable to the specific areas of the energy industry, but in the comprehensive use and protection of energy, the control of energy development, the strengthening of strategic energy reserves, the improvement of energy security supply and the protection of the environment, etc., the single energy legislation can not cope with these problems, and a comprehensive energy law is needed to make provisions and provide institutional guarantees.
2. Lack of specialized energy security laws
Since the rapid development of economic globalization, global energy consumption has continued to grow, after the Middle East oil crisis, oil prices have risen, and whether energy can be sustainably supplied has become the main concern of all countries, and the black swan event that broke out in 2022 - the Russia-Ukraine war has once again caused the world's energy supply to face a shortage crisis. The rise in EU coal imports and the rebound in the proportion of coal in energy supply imply that fossil fuels represented by coal are likely to restart. Based on the above analysis, the mainland's energy security is mainly faced with five challenges: First, the domestic oil and gas resources are limited, and the competition pressure in the international oil market is high. There are few domestic oil and gas resources in the mainland, and the international oil resources are concentrated in the Middle East and a few other countries, and the natural gas resources are mainly concentrated in the Middle East, Russia and Central Asia. The pressure of competition in the international energy market on the mainland has increased, and until now the mainland is still not a member of the International Energy Agency, and its ties with other energy-consuming countries are weak, which is very unfavorable to the mainland's energy security interests. Second, the distribution of energy types on the mainland is uneven, and there is an imbalance between regional energy supply and demand. The main energy source coal in the mainland is concentrated in Shanxi, Shanxi and Mengmeng, and the regional distribution of coal and coal power is very different, and the supply and demand are unbalanced, so it is necessary to strengthen the comprehensive transportation capacity of the outside world. Third, the awareness of energy conservation in energy development and utilization is not strong, and the energy efficiency is low. The mainland's energy resources and mineral deposits are not huge, but in the process of development and utilization, it is faced with huge energy consumption, and there is a huge potential for energy saving, so improving the efficiency of energy development and use and reducing ineffective energy consumption is a problem that must be solved by energy security. Fourth, domestic energy development technology lags behind, and environmental pollution is serious. Coal is still the main energy source in the mainland, but the development technology level is backward, the development of clean coal technology is slow, and the extensive coal mining for many years has greatly overdrawn the environment, and the ecological environment has deteriorated seriously. Fifth, the mainland is rich in new energy, and its development is facing challenges. The mainland is a vast country, with a vast land and abundant resources, and also contains many new and renewable energy sources such as wind energy, hydro energy, solar energy, geothermal energy, tidal energy, etc., and has huge resource potential. Promoting the development of new energy can not only improve the current energy structure of the mainland but also strengthen environmental protection, but the current new energy development and utilization technology in the mainland is not mature, and blind mining is not conducive to the sustainable development of new energy.
To sum up, the mainland's energy security is facing a prominent test, but the existing energy legal system does not respond to the above-mentioned energy security challenges, and specialized energy security laws need to be filled urgently.
3. The connection between energy strategy, energy planning and energy law is not smooth
The energy strategy is a country's long-term goals, major decision-making and consistent actions in energy, which reflects the country's energy positioning and energy value orientation, and is a predictable national action plan. At the level of energy strategy, the mainland has made clear provisions on the development of fossil energy: continue to develop fossil energy such as coal as an energy base guarantee, and actively develop new energy.
Energy planning is a country's government's action guide on energy, the government as the main body of the implementation of the energy strategy, under the determination of the energy strategy according to the strategic arrangement of energy planning, planning is often comprehensive, directional and timely. At present, the energy planning of governments at all levels in the mainland is relatively scattered, and the local nature is prominent, and because the mainland has not yet promulgated the energy law, many energy plans as administrative acts lack the energy law as their basis, and lack vitality and implementation effectiveness.
In summary, the energy strategy has been clearly deployed and arranged in the mainland, but under the guidance of the macro level of the energy strategy, energy planning and energy law have not been effectively connected with it, and the poor connection of the three has brought pre-obstacles to the construction of the system of energy security laws and regulations.
3. The construction of the system of legal norms for energy security in the new era
Implement the overall national security concept and Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, in order to realize the legislation of the Basic Energy Law as soon as possible, promote the construction of specialized energy security legislation and energy security legislation from decentralized to systematic, and combine the current basis of the construction of the mainland's energy security laws and regulations, the mainland should clarify the principles of energy security legislation, build a systematic and complete energy security legal system, and improve the energy security legal system in the construction of energy security laws and regulations.
(1) The transformation and development of mainland energy security laws and regulations in the new era
Based on the above-mentioned investigation and analysis of the current situation of energy security legislation in the mainland, it is indeed necessary for the mainland to make corresponding transformation and upgrading in terms of legal norms in the new era in response to the new and complex energy security development situation, including the following four aspects:
First of all, we should promote the formal promulgation and implementation of the Energy Law, which is the basic law. The function of the energy law should be comprehensive legislation in the field of energy, making adjustments and institutional arrangements for the overall issues of energy and existing specialized legislation, and giving full play to the role of overseeing the overall situation of the energy field at the macro level, coordinating the individual legislation of all parties at the medium level and checking and filling gaps at the micro level. The 2020 Draft for Comments clearly stipulates the legislative purpose and scope of application of the law, as well as energy strategy and planning, energy development and processing conversion, energy supply and use, energy market, energy security, scientific and technological progress, international cooperation, supervision and management, legal liability, supplementary provisions, etc. In the 2022 legislative work plan, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress included the Energy Law in the legislative category of "ensuring national economic security", and it is expected that the promulgation of the Basic Law will play a positive guiding role in the formulation of specific energy laws and policies in the future.
Second, special energy security legislation should be promoted under the guidance of the overall national security concept. In important energy fields related to the national economy and people's livelihood, such as oil, coal and renewable energy, special legislation will be strengthened to provide legal system guarantees for key energy sources. The national security strategy emphasizes the energy security strategy, optimizes the energy layout, attaches importance to the reserve of key energy, ensures the supply and security of energy in peacetime and wartime, and comprehensively improves the national security of energy. The overall concept of national security emphasizes equal emphasis on development and security issues, with security and steady development and development promoting security. In response to the outstanding problems in the field of energy security, a separate law is set up to respond to the better development of energy.
Third, it is necessary to pay attention to the convergence of energy strategy, energy planning and energy law. As a national program of action in the field of energy, the energy strategy plays the role of an overall outline. Energy strategy, energy planning and energy law are interdependent and changing at the same time. As a macro theory, energy strategy needs the specific implementation of energy planning by government departments, and the scientific nature of energy planning indicators also needs the guidance of energy strategy. Energy strategy, energy planning and energy law together constitute a complete system of national energy countermeasures, including energy theory and program, rules and systems, although the three have different levels and ranks, but they complement each other's functions, jointly provide countermeasures for the national development of energy security, and realize the orderly development of energy national security.
Finally, energy security legislation should be promoted from decentralized to systematic. Prior to this, in order to cope with the complex and severe energy situation, the mainland has formulated various energy laws and regulations in specific fields, but all relevant laws and regulations are relatively scattered, and there is no unified legislative purpose and guidelines. The "overall national security concept" emphasizes "the establishment of a centralized, unified, efficient and authoritative national security system" to comprehensively safeguard national security in all fields. The overall security required by the overall national security concept must also require the totality of the legal norms of energy security, that is, the system. In 2015, a new national security law was promulgated and implemented, based on the overall concept of national security. At the same time, energy security legislation is scattered in various legal norms and has not yet been systematized. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that "the modernization of national governance requires more and more urgent scientific and complete legal norms" and "it is necessary to accelerate the formation of a complete legal norm system". Therefore, it is of great significance to promote the energy security legislation from decentralized to systematic construction from the perspective of overall national security.
(2) Exploration and construction of the legal system of mainland energy security in the new era
1. Clarify the principles of energy security legislation
The mainland's energy security legislation must follow the principle of putting national interests first and balancing efficiency and security. The "national interest" in this article refers to the economic, social and ecological interests involved in the development and utilization of energy.
The principle of the supremacy of national interests, energy security is an important material basis for national security, the primary purpose of energy security legislation is to safeguard national interests, when there is a conflict in legislation, the national interests are supreme, focusing on safeguarding the economic, social and ecological interests of the mainland.
The principle of efficiency, energy security legislation should implement the principle of energy efficiency, and consider both internal efficiency and external efficiency in economic activities to maximize overall efficiency. China's Agenda 21 stipulates energy production efficiency, consumption patterns, efficient use of resources, promotion of new energy technologies, and improvement of energy efficiency.
The principle of safety, energy national security legislation should take into account energy ecological security, reduce emissions in energy development and utilization, strengthen environmental protection, provide special laws and regulations for energy ecological security as institutional guarantees, take various means to control energy pollution, promote cleaner production, and take the energy development path of coordination between energy economic security and energy ecological security.
Energy security is to ensure the continuous and stable energy supply in a country's economic and social production and development, the healthy development of the energy market and the sustainability of the ecological environment. When energy activities cannot balance the interests of these three parties, or according to the principle of profit and loss ratio, it is necessary to actively adjust relevant activities through energy security legislation to ensure the maximization of economic, social and ecological interests. In the development and utilization of energy, it is also necessary to take into account efficiency and safety, use the legislative system to ensure the improvement of resource utilization efficiency, and promote the coordinated development of energy economic security and energy ecological security.
2. Build a systematic and complete legal system for energy security
The current energy-related laws in mainland China are relatively scattered, and a systematic legal system for energy security needs to be established.
First of all, we will speed up the promulgation and implementation of the Energy Law, the basic law. According to the foregoing, the Energy Law is a comprehensive legislation in the field of energy law, which can play the role of macroscopic overview of individual legislation for each energy source and series of specialized legislation according to the content of the General Provisions. At the same time, the promulgation of the energy law can better connect with the mainland's energy strategy and energy planning, and a country's energy strategy puts forward the specific implementation of the government's energy plan from the macro theoretical level, and also needs the energy law system to respond and build institutional space for it. In the context of the new energy strategy of "four revolutions, one cooperation" in the new era, the new energy strategy will be implemented through the government's energy planning response, and the legal system will be guaranteed for the former through the promulgation of the Basic Energy Law, so that the three will become the cornerstone of the trinity energy security system that is scientific and reasonable and has a clear and unified value orientation. The formulation of the energy law must be closely linked to the energy strategy, and the realization of the energy strategy depends on the implementation of the energy law. The effective connection of the three will better play the leading role of energy strategy in the ideological level, the adjustment and control role of energy planning in specific practice, and the scientific and authoritative role of energy law at the institutional level.
Second, speed up specialized energy security legislation. Petroleum is a key international energy source, and the mainland's dependence on foreign oil is high, so it is necessary to formulate a special petroleum law to ensure the order of the domestic oil market and the safe supply of oil. The Petroleum Law should focus on stipulating issues such as the ownership, exploitation rights, circulation, and recovery of petroleum resources, so as to ensure that on the basis of the government's macroeconomic regulation and control of the petroleum industry, it will further give play to the important role of the market mechanism and improve the pipeline operation access system. Taking into account the safety of the ecological environment, the environmental protection system for the development and utilization of petroleum should be stipulated. At the same time, it is necessary to attach importance to oil reserves, stipulate various measures for oil reserves, establish a sound government reserve mechanism, and ensure that the state's energy reserves can maintain the smooth operation of the national economy in the face of insufficient international oil supply. According to the actual national conditions of the mainland and the new strategic arrangement of energy, the mainland still has a strong dependence on coal resources, and the development and utilization efficiency of coal directly affects the realization of the mainland's "double carbon" goal. On the basis of the current coal law, we should pay attention to the upgrading and optimization of the coal energy structure, realize the efficient and clean utilization of coal, and make a basic institutional design for the optimization and upgrading of the coal industry structure, so as to lay a good foundation for the mainland to gradually "reduce carbon emissions and withdraw coal". At the same time, the Coal Law should stipulate the incentive mechanism for innovation in the field of coal-related technologies, and set up a special chapter on the value orientation of energy conservation and environmental protection, so as to give full play to the main role of coal resources in the mainland's energy system at the current stage, and take into account technological upgrading and environmental protection at the same time. Renewable energy has made outstanding contributions to replacing oil resources to cope with the energy crisis and energy conservation and environmental protection, but at this stage, renewable energy does not occupy the dominant position of energy in the mainland, and needs the guidance and promotion of the legal system.
Finally, it is necessary to strengthen supporting legislation, establish and improve an all-round and multi-level legal system, and build a legal and normative system for energy security. The provisions on energy security in the National Security Law mainly focus on energy development, reserves, transportation and international cooperation, which are the core essence of energy security. However, as a relatively macro law, it is difficult to take into account all aspects of energy security development, so it is necessary to have energy-related basic laws to escort the development of energy security in the new era, and the promulgation of the energy law to provide a comprehensive basic law for the energy security legal system. At the same time, special legislation will be set up in key areas of energy, such as the Petroleum Law, the Natural Gas Law, the Coal Law, etc., to make specific provisions for different types of energy and promote the development of various types of energy in a targeted manner. It is also necessary to pay attention to the coordination and linkage of the special energy law and legislation in other related fields, so as to achieve coordination and cooperation between legal systems and the optimization and upgrading of the system. In the context of the current impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic and the grim international energy and environmental situation, the mainland must make full use of the international and domestic markets and resources, strengthen energy cooperation with the international community, jointly respond to climate change and energy crisis, and promote sustainable development.
3. Improve the legal system for energy security
The specific legal system of energy security should pay attention to the following aspects:
First, energy conservation should be mentioned as an important position in energy development. To maintain energy national security, first of all, it is necessary to ensure the supply of energy, and blindly increasing energy supply is not destined to be a fundamental policy, taking the resource-saving, energy-efficient use of the development mode is fundamental, we must effectively change the economic growth model, adjust the industrial structure, and change the extensive to fine development. At the level of the legal system, appropriate preferential policies for energy conservation can be formulated nationwide, the awareness of energy conservation can be promoted nationwide, and energy conservation can be included in the track of rule of law. In addition, a variety of preferential policies such as capital subsidies, tax exemptions, and low-interest loans can be formulated to encourage enterprises to save energy, promote and encourage the development of energy-saving enterprises, and give certain policy preferences to energy-saving enterprises. Finally, increase the publicity of energy-saving laws, regulations and policies, improve people's awareness of energy conservation, and create a good trend of energy conservation for everyone in society.
Second, attach importance to the development and utilization of new energy. To maintain energy national security, it is necessary to establish a long-term vision, and in the context of the energy structure that is still dominated by fossil energy at this stage, it is necessary to establish the idea of gradually "reducing carbon" and developing renewable new energy to deal with the energy crisis as soon as possible. In the early stage of new energy development, it is difficult to rely on the market for independent development, and it is necessary to rely on the government's drive and support as the basic driving force for industrial development. The positioning of renewable energy legislation should focus on protecting the advantages of the renewable energy industry, promoting the development of related industries and protecting the intellectual property rights of new energy, so as to promote the sustainable and healthy development of renewable energy in the mainland.
Third, establish an energy reserve mechanism. Energy reserves are the foundation of a country's energy security, energy reserves should be combined with national reserves and social reserves, clarify the variety, quantity and quality of energy that the state and society bear the obligation of energy reserves, strengthen the reserves of strategic energy and scarce energy, and make provisions on the specific issues of energy reserves. Among them, the shortage of oil is an important issue in the mainland's energy security, and the first thing to ensure energy security is to ensure the security of oil supply. Among the world's major oil importers, the mainland is the only country that has not yet established a complete strategic petroleum reserve, and it is necessary to formulate a special energy reserve law as soon as possible.
IV. Conclusion
As an important part of national security, energy security is of unprecedented importance in the strategic situation of the great changes unseen in a century in the new era and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The development of energy security is facing a difficult transition in the context of today's complex and volatile international environment, and how to effectively deal with the international risks of energy security needs to be addressed at the level of domestic energy security legal system. In the new era, the overall development of the mainland's energy security legal system requires the convergence of the basic energy law, the specialized energy legal system and the energy strategy, energy planning and the energy law, as well as the clarification of the legislative principles of energy security and the improvement of the specific energy legal system.
In the macro context of national security, how to construct specific security is a long-term and major innovative work, which requires the joint efforts of legal scholars. The mainland should establish and improve the energy security legal system that adapts to and serves the development of the socialist economy with Chinese characteristics in the new era as soon as possible, and in the practice of energy security, it should take into account economic and environmental benefits, improve the new connotation of energy security in the new era, and make energy security an important cornerstone and solid guarantee for maintaining the overall development of the mainland in the new era.