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oneman28 · 01-02-2006, 04:46 AM

http://english.eastday.com/eastday/e...html30/12/2005 11:28

Quote:

China's electricity shortage would ease up next year and a small surplus in supply is expected for 2007, said the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) on its website on Thursday.

The Commission made the prediction while announcing that the country's electricity generation capacity has made a breakthrough to top 500 million kilowatts as of Dec. 27, with the operation of a new power plant in east China's Zhejiang Province.

China has launched power projects with an overall generating capacity of more than 100 million kilowatts this year, and those completed projects are now generating over 60 million kilowatts of power, effectively easing the power strain of the country, said the NDRC.

Electricity shortage has become a bottleneck of the country's economic growth in recent years, especially in the coastal areas where the economy has been growing at a two-digit rate in the past 10 years.

However, experts and industry insiders now believe that the country is being relieved of power shortage this year.

The Development Research Center under the State Council recently published a report, attributing the easing of power shortage to a slower growth in electricity demand, a rapid increase in electricity generation capacity, and improved efficiency in electricity transmission.

Sufficient supply of water and coal for hydro and thermo power plants also contributed to the ease of power shortage, according to the report.
China's overall electricity generation capacity would reach 587 million kilowatts by the end of 2006, the Center predicted.

However, experts have warned of possible supply shortage in certain areas despite the general supply-demand balance in the country.

Meanwhile, they also suggest investment in the energy sector be curbed to avoid the problem of over-capacity which might emerge in the coal mining and electricity generation sectors in 2007.