CHINA has become the world's second-largest consumer of jet fuel after the US, consuming about 20 million tons annually, the civil aviation regulator said yesterday.

Speaking at a jet fuel forum in Beijing yesterday, Li Jiaxiang, director of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, said that Chinese airlines flew nearly 293 million passengers last year and the total traffic turnover hit 57.3 billion ton kilometers, an annual 7 percent increase.

The US ranks as the top consumer of jet fuel as it consumed about 112 million tons annually, according to the US Department of Transportation.

China's 12 jet fuel companies sold over 17 million tons of fuel domestically and abroad last year, said Li.

The China National Aviation Fuel Group Corp, the country's dominant jet fuel supplier, sells jet fuel to over 200 airlines globally and provides the fuel in about 170 airports in the Chinese mainland, said Sun Li, chairman of the company.

The Chinese airlines are set to expand their fleet of aircraft to 4,700 by the end of 2015 from the existing 2,888, according to Li.