Crises and delays in coal shipments on China’s increased pressure on railway system and raising concerns by Chinese officials about the security of the country’s growing oil imports will proceed hiking international prices for crude oil and natural gas, according to energy experts.

"China’s rail network is running over capacity," said an energy economist specializing in Asia James P. Dorian in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. It resulted in a number of shortages and delays in deliveries of coal to China’s coastal power plants. Consequently most heavy industries, seeking to correspond to rising U.S. demand for products, turned last year to diesel-powered backup generators.

The need for oil-fired power has made China to raise its purchases of imported oil by 72% in the last two years.

The volumes of oil export will remain high in China, experts forecast, since Beijing is about to start filling a strategic petroleum reserve, following the examples of U.S. and Europe, that will have about 100 million barrels of oil in store. The reserve, aimed at protecting China’s industries and military against sudden breakdowns in oil imports, is expected to be ready by 2009.

Rising pressure can be felt in the domestic Chinese market as well. Yesterday, China’s top economic-planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission, disclosed its plans to increase the retail price of gasoline by about $36.25 a metric ton. The agency, having raised prices last August, stressed that the second rise is necessary to curb unreasonably high demand. It also will support China’s state-controlled oil companies which appear to be unable to pass recent oil price rise to consumers. Recently, the U.S.-equivalent price for a gallon of gasoline in Beijing was $1.40.