NEW DELHI - An alliance of the world's biggest polluters is working together to make the most energy-intensive sectors such as coal, cement and steel manufacturing more efficient, India said on Wednesday.

The Asia-Pacific Partnership -- made up of India, China, Japan, South Korea, the United States and Australia -- favours a voluntary approach to reducing emissions instead following the Kyoto model of setting specific targets.

The six countries -- which represent about half of the world's economy, population and energy use -- have identified 98 projects in power generation, steel, cement, aluminium, mining and buildings where they will share technology to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

But environmentalists are sceptical about the approach, saying that the pact is voluntary and does not commit countries to the kind of emissions cuts which are required to prevent global warming.

They said countries such as the United States and Australia were using the voluntary pact as an excuse to avoid demands to ratify the Kyoto agreement.

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