According to new data from the International Energy Agency, China consumed 2.25 billion tons of energy equivalents last year – nearly 4% more than the United States. With a population of 1.3 billion and rapid industrialization, it should come as no surprise that China plays an important role in the global energy market. While being labeled as the world’s largest energy consumer may not bring China the kind of attention it is looking for, instead of passively accepting the title, the country is using this opportunity to uncover emerging energy markets.