The country emitted 590.4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent of the six greenhouse gases (GHGs) covered by the Kyoto Protocol, up from 572.5 million tonnes in 2009, said the government report, revising an initial estimate made last year of 582.4 million.

"2010 was, on average, the coldest year since 1987," said the report, which explained that the 16 percent jump in residential emissions was responsible for just over half the total year-on-year increase.

Most of the rest of the increase was due to a greater number of maintenance shutdowns at low-carbon nuclear power plants, which forced utilities to burn more fossils fuels to generate electricity, the report said.