China may face power supply issues in winter
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China might face pressures related to power supply this winter due to cold weather, surging coal price, and government measures for energy conservation and emission cutting, head of China's largest power supplier to end users said Tuesday.
China's northeastern and northwestern regions, and eight northern provinces, usually the coldest areas in the country, reported record high power consumption during the first half of this month, said Liu Zhenya, general manager of the State Grid Corp. of China (SGCC).
Figures from the National Power Dispatch and Communication Center showed both power output and consumption increased on a monthly basis in the first half of this month, up by 8.9 percent and 7 percent respectively over the same period last month.
Measures taken by local governments to conserve energy and cut emissions are sure to have effect on power producers, especially those in central China's coal-rich Shanxi Province, and would affect the power output, said Liu.
Cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Chongqing, and provinces of Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang may also face power shortages in the coming peak consumption period, Liu added.
Currently, accumulated coal stocks for power plants directly supplying electricity to SGCC are about 64.62 million tons, enough for 18 days. But possible price rises would bring uncertainty to subsequent power coal demand and supply, according to Liu.
"We will try our utmost to guarantee smooth power supplies," said Liu.
