China shuts less than 1.0pc of power-generating capacity
Thursday, 7 January 2010
BEIJING, Jan 6 (Bloomberg): China, facing icy temperatures and heavy snowfall, shut 0.5 per cent of its electricity-generating capacity as bad weather hampered coal deliveries to power plants.
The world's second-largest energy user took offline 4,780 megawatts of capacity linked to its main network as of January 3, according to data provided by State Grid Corp of China, the dominant grid operator. China's overall capacity reached 874,000 megawatts as of the end of last year. Coal is used as fuel at about 80 per cent of the country's generators.
Temperatures in northern China may drop to as low as minus 32 degrees Celsius (minus 26 degrees Fahrenheit) from this evening to Thursday night after the heavy snowfall this week, the China Meteorological Administration said. Coal stockpiles at power plants connected to State Grid's network have fallen 4.3 per cent since December 28 to 21.11 million metric tons, enough for up to nine days of consumption, data from the company showed.
"It's definitely not as serious as in early 2008," Dave Dai, a utility analyst with CLSA Asia Pacific Markets, said by phone from Hong Kong. "The transportation bottlenecks have been easy in general. In certain provinces, coal stockpiles are low, but that doesn't mean there isn't enough coal to go around."
The world's second-largest energy user took offline 4,780 megawatts of capacity linked to its main network as of January 3, according to data provided by State Grid Corp of China, the dominant grid operator. China's overall capacity reached 874,000 megawatts as of the end of last year. Coal is used as fuel at about 80 per cent of the country's generators.
Temperatures in northern China may drop to as low as minus 32 degrees Celsius (minus 26 degrees Fahrenheit) from this evening to Thursday night after the heavy snowfall this week, the China Meteorological Administration said. Coal stockpiles at power plants connected to State Grid's network have fallen 4.3 per cent since December 28 to 21.11 million metric tons, enough for up to nine days of consumption, data from the company showed.
"It's definitely not as serious as in early 2008," Dave Dai, a utility analyst with CLSA Asia Pacific Markets, said by phone from Hong Kong. "The transportation bottlenecks have been easy in general. In certain provinces, coal stockpiles are low, but that doesn't mean there isn't enough coal to go around."