BEIJING (AFP) -- An increasingly energy-thirsty China is expected to surpass Japan to become the world's second largest crude oil importer next year, a senior industry figure was quoted as saying Friday.

Total import volume of China's crude oil this year will hit over 80 million tonnes, Xinhua news agency said, citing Wang Jiming, president of Sinopec, China's largest oil refiner and producer of petrochemical products.

Last year China spent 12.7 billion dollars on imports of 70 million tones of crude oil, 15 percent more than the previous year.

The world's third largest consumer of oil and gas behind the United States and Japan, China is widely forecast to surpass its Asian neighbor within the next 10 years.

Wang said the state-owned oil and gas supplier plans to ramp up imports while at the same time seek high-quality overseas resources to avoid a potential energy crisis.

China has been aggressively stepping up the diversification of its oil interests, sealing several major oil and gas deals in Central Asia, Southeast Asia and Russia as it seeks to diversify resources.

According to the International Energy Agency, China is the current driving force in oil demand, contributing almost 35 percent of global growth this year and 30 percent in 2004.

"We will not put all our money in one basket," Wang said, adding that the company will conduct oil purchases in North Africa and Southeast Asia besides the traditional Middle East region.

Analysts have warned that the country's scarce mineral and energy resources pose a major threat to the booming economy of the world's most populous nation.

China's energy demand is projected to more than double between now and 2030, and the country will account for 20 percent of the increase in world primary energy supply and demand during the period, experts say.