BEIJING, May 16 (Reuters) - An energy efficiency project launched by Beijing and the United Nations has helped cut carbon emissions in rural China and attracted investment in energy-saving technologies.

The six-year project, due to end in August, has reduced carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 300,000 tonnes per year in nine pilot sites in Shaanxi, Shanxi, Sichuan and Zhejiang provinces, said a joint official statement released on Wednesday.

The pilot programme has been extended to 118 Chinese township and village enterprises, helping to reduce emissions by a total of about 2 million tonnes annually, it said.

China's Ministry of Agriculture and U.N. specialist agencies invested $18.5 million in major polluting sectors in rural China -- cement, coking, brick and metal casting -- which together make up one sixth of the country's CO2 emissions.

The project has also inspired rural businesses to invest more than $150 million of their revenue back into energy efficiency technologies, the statement said.

Township and village enterprises account for 30 percent of China's gross domestic output, it added.

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