A report regarding alternative fuels in China will encourage the use of fuel methanol as an alternative to fossil fuels in the country's auto industry, an expert who was involved in the drafting of the report said yesterday.

The draft, which was finished recently, is the conclusion of half a year's research into China's possibilities for alternative energy. The research was initiated by the National Development and Reform Commission and jointly carried out by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Health, the State Environmental Protection Administration, the Forestry Administration and 10 experts from the oil and automobile industries.

The draft is currently undergoing further editing prior to submission to the State Council, the expert, who works under the Energy Research Institute of the NDRC and wishes to remain anonymous, told Interfax.

Before the draft was issued, there was a long debate about the safety of fuel methanol as an alternative source of energy, according to a report by state-run People's Daily.

Zhang Yongguang, a director of the Research Institute of Petroleum Processing of the China Petroleum and Chemical Corp. (Sinopec), argued that fuel methanol should not be used in the automobile industry, since it is a harmful and carcinogenic substance.

But Chen Weiguo, secretary-general of the China Association of Alcohol & Ether Clean Fuels and Automobiles, supported the draft. He said that there will be a testing period for fuel methanol in the automobile industry before 2010. "After that year, fuel methanol will be widely used in in China," he was reported as saying.

The draft itself states that fuel methanol can be used in the automobile industry, and "will not cause great harm to people's health if used in the correct way".

Also according to the draft, more than 50 percent of oil processed in China is used as transportation fuel. Currently, imported crude oil accounts for over 45 percent of China's total demand for fuels.

"There will be an oil crisis worldwide after 2020, and China's annual oil needs will reach 450 million to 610 million tons at that time. China should speed up the development of alternative energy, especially coal-based fuel and bio-materials-based fuel," the draft said.