Shanghai is experiencing an acute power shortage due to the cold
spell. Peak electricity production in local power plants hit 13.4
million kwh on January 28.
How can the city ensure enough electricity for residential use?
The China Business News conducted an interview with Zhou
Yongxing, General Manager of Shanghai Electric Power Co:
CBN (China Business News): Storms
felled power transmission towers in Guizhou and Hunan provinces,
disrupting a link in central China’s transmission system. Why have
no power transmission tower fallen in northeast China, where the
temperature is lower than these areas?
Zhou: In northeast China, temperatures in
winter routinely go below 10 to 20 centigrade, making it difficult
to deposit snow on a tower. However, the lowest temperature in
Hunan and Guizhou has been minus 3 centigrade. Heavy snowfalls,
thick ice and freezing temperatures cause power transmission towers
to crumple.
CBN: Do severe snowstorms in central and
eastern China influence power supplies in Shanghai?
Zhou: Power supplies in the city are influenced
by coal shortages and disrupted electricity transmission during bad
weather.
Coal transport has been hampered by a combination of bad weather
affecting much of the country along with rising passenger rail
traffic as the Spring Festival approaches. Some coalmines went on
recess prior to the Spring Festival, while many regions have closed
small, unsafe mines as part of the national campaign for safe coal
production; this has also led to a decrease in supplies.
Peak electricity capacity in Shanghai is 18 million kilowatts.
We need to buy 6 million kilowatts from other provinces, for
example, Hubei. This extremely severe winter weather coupled with
power transmission safety made us decide to cut off power
transmission from other provinces temporarily.
CBN: What efforts will be taken to ensure
adequate power supplies in Shanghai?
Zhou: We will increase electricity production
by natural gas fired power plants if the amount of generated
electricity is less than 10 million kwh from local power plants.
Our company also runs some oil-powered plants. We will try to
purchase as much electricity as we can from other provinces without
taking cost into account in order to ensure adequate residential
use and minimize negative influences on society.
Shanghai Electric will also enhance power control measures.
Heavy power users will be asked to reschedule production to
non-peak hours to alter current power demands.
(China.org.cn by Wu Nanlan, January 30, 2008)