China's power generation in January fell 13 percent year-on-year due to weak demand during the Lunar New Year, according to an industry association.

The country's major power producers produced only 250.3 million megawatt hours of power in the month, said an official with China Electricity Council (CEC) on February 10, who declined to be named.

This is the fourth consecutive month that the country has seen a negative growth in power generation. CEC statistics showed that thermal power generation in October, November and December last year fell 5.3 percent, 16.6 percent and 12.4 percent respectively.

"During the Lunar New Year, many industrial plants stopped production, leading to a drop in power demand," said Xue Jing, an executive with CEC.

"However, compared with last October and November, power demand in China has begun to see some recovery," she said.

Power demand is seen as a barometer of China's economy as much of the country's growth relies on power-intensive industries like metals and chemicals.

According to a CEC report released on Feb 4, China's power demand will continue to fall in the first half of this year before picking up in the third quarter.

From the end of the second quarter, power demand may start to increase, said CEC.

The first two quarters will be the most difficult time for the power sector, said the association.

The National Energy Administration earlier said China would invest 580 billion yuan in the country's power industry this year and also accelerate the development of nuclear power plants and wind farms.

(China Daily February 11, 2009)