The devastated regions of southwest China extended restrictions on energy consumption on Monday as they grapple with dwindling hydropower production and rising domestic demand for electricity during a long drought and heat wave.
State weather forecasters issued a heat “red alert” for the 11th straight day on Monday as extreme weather continues to wreak havoc on power supplies and damage to crops. They also raised the national drought alert to “orange” – the second highest level.
The drought has already “severely affected” mid-season rice and summer corn in some southern regions, the Agriculture Ministry said on Sunday.
The National Meteorological Center said 62 weather stations, from Sichuan in the southwest to Fujian on the southeast coast, recorded record temperatures on Sunday. The situation could improve from Wednesday, with a cold front entering China via Xinjiang.
The Chongqing region, which hit temperatures of 45C late last week, announced that opening hours of more than 500 malls and other commercial locations would be reduced from Monday to alleviate energy demand.
Two malls on the list contacted by Reuters on Monday confirmed they had received the government notification and will adhere to the new opening hours. Two hotels on the list said they are still operating normally but are restricting the use of air conditioning.
In neighboring Sichuan province, a major hydropower generator, authorities also extended existing restrictions on industrial power consumers until Aug. 25, financial news service Caixin said on Sunday. Power generation in Sichuan is only at half the normal level.
He cited companies in the battery industry as saying industrial power users in the cities of Yibin and Suining were told to remain closed until Thursday.
A Sichuan-based pesticide producer, Lier Chemical Co, confirmed in a notice that production restrictions at two of its production bases in the province would continue until Aug.
Toyota Motor Corp gradually resumed operations at its Sichuan plant in China on Monday using a power generator after suspending operations last week, a company spokesman said.
Other regions have also sent 50 emergency power-generating vehicles to Sichuan since last Thursday to help alleviate shortages, the Global Times newspaper said.
Several factories in Sichuan and Chongqing, including those of battery maker CATL and electric vehicle giant BYD, have only been able to partially operate in recent weeks due to power outages.
A source familiar with the matter said that CATL’s Yibin plant makes battery cells for Tesla and that there were concerns that continued outages could affect the US automaker.
However, a second source said there was no sign of an impact so far, with production at Tesla’s Shanghai factory unchanged. CATL and Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Shanghai, which has been criticized on China’s Twitter-like Weibo service for its use of Sichuan-generated electricity, imposed its own consumption restrictions on Monday, turning off decorative lighting in the riverside area of the Bund and parts of the Lujiazui financial center. for two days.
Companies will be encouraged to “scale” energy consumption to reduce peak loads. Some outdoor construction projects will be put on hold, the official Shanghai Daily newspaper said.
Major agricultural regions have also warned of the impact on crops, with Henan province saying more than a million hectares of land have been affected by the drought so far.
About 2.2 million hectares across the Yangtze basin were affected, according to the Ministry of Water Resources.
Source: CNN Brasil
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