Topic
China is used to seeing power supply cuts in parts of the country each year, but their frequency has increased sharply since the second half of 2020, escalating to a crisis in September 2021. Potential causes include Beijing-dictated carbon reduction targets to lower emissions, and an urgent shortage of coal.
Technology and innovation can provide answers for the country, which must put road maps in place for worsening dry and wet periods.
With increases of up to 7 per cent, more vigorous government monitoring of companies and relief measures for those weighed down by rises are expected.
- Beijing’s pledge to phase down coal use starting in 2026 appears in jeopardy amid a building spree for new coal plants, energy analysts say
- Coal consumption will only begin to decline after 2027 as renewables such as wind and solar energy take over, according to Rystad Energy
Most new projects are in areas that do not lack generating capacity, says report from Global Energy Monitor and Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.
Huge processing vessel undocks as a chorus of calls and suggestions flag energy security pitfalls and seek action from Beijing at a time of internal and external uncertainties.
China is unlikely to see large-scale power shortages this summer even with heatwaves driving up demand for cooling and more frequent droughts threatening the country’s hydropower output, analysts said.
The largest and most extensive joint exercise in China’s eastern region aims to ensure that extreme summer weather will not cripple power grids, shut down manufacturing or leave people in the dark.
Hydropower-reliant Yunnan province cannot generate as much electricity amid low water inflows, and months of diminished rainfall threaten to have a broader impact on other regions.
With extreme weather set to once again test the nation’s electricity grid after heatwaves and drought last year, the Chinese government has been quick to respond to the threat, according to The Lantau Group.
Project on the Gansu-Ningxia border is part of planned westward extension of controversial south-north water diversion network.
Energy-intensive aluminium production in the hydropower-reliant Chinese province helps drive the regional economy, but authorities say that persistent drought conditions necessitate power rationing.
New coal power capacity under development in China rose 38 per cent to 366GW last year, while it fell 20 per cent in rest of the world, according to a report by climate NGOs.
China embarked on a massive expansion of its coal-fired power capacity in response to last summer’s historic power crisis, approving the equivalent of two large coal power plants per week, new research has found.
Coal power plants picked up the slack for hydroelectric plants in Sichuan province during a summer 2022 drought, but they also consumed enough water for 1.2 million people every day, analysts say.
Renewable energy offers abundant economic opportunities, but critics question if a green-energy build-up will be enough for the northeast region to counter the ingrained economic issues that have hindered its past efforts at revitalisation.
Countries such as China, Japan and South Korea are storing fuel, varying sources and saving energy to establish sufficient supplies for the colder months after grappling with soaring prices.
Amid China’s economic downturn and regulatory uncertainties, the new-energy industry remains a bright spot, attracting abundant capital and creating lucrative business opportunities.
Domestic production of integrated circuits recorded a 24.7 per cent year-on-year decline in August to 24.7 billion units.
Party congress expected to celebrate last year’s declared success in lifting lowest incomes and turn focus to 2049 goal.
The decrease reflected weakening demand in August amid power shortages, fresh Covid-19 flare-ups that disrupted production, and escalating tensions between the US and China.
Just weeks after China, the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, suspended climate talks with the US, Beijing’s climate envoy has slammed developed countries for falling short on climate financing.
China’s Premier Li Keqiang Beijing has said companies are facing more difficulties than during the initial coronavirus outbreak in 2020 and pledged to unveil additional support policies this month.
Market sentiment has already been affected by Beijing’s unyielding zero-Covid policy and the ongoing housing market woes, any further shocks could drain demand for risk appetite, analysts say.
China is facing a power shortage due to heatwaves and drought, affecting the Yangtze River basin in particular, home to several manufacturing hubs and a large population.
Rain and temperatures have started to fall in Sichuan province, but concerns remain that the economic and inflation fallout from China’s power crisis could still be ‘felt for months’.
In a document on climate change goals released on Monday, the government of China’s southernmost province said that 45 per cent of vehicles on its roads would be powered by batteries by 2030.
Shaanxi, Gansu and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region have fast-tracked coal shipments to Sichuan in August, but analysts say they are not enough alone to solve the province’s energy problems.
As parts of southern China grapple with power shortages, analysts say manufacturers may choose to channel future investment towards cooler regions that are less dependent on hydropower.
A power shortage in Sichuan province is disrupting car production in Shanghai, just as China’s Motown was recovering from a two-month lockdown.
China has set carbon emission reduction targets and has moved to reduce reliance on coal for energy production, but high summer temperatures have hit hydropower generation in Sichuan province, leading to electricity blackouts and power rationing.
