China Power Grids Strained by Heat, Drought
 
August 18, 2006

BEIJING - Soaring temperatures and the worst drought in over 50 years have strained power grids in southwestern China and caused blackouts in at least one city in the east, state media reported on Thursday.

Electricity generators have struggled in recent years to match demand during hot months when power-guzzling air-conditioning is turned on, but a slew of new capacity meant there had been hardly any problems reported this summer.
But Hangzhou, capital of coastal Zhejiang province, cut its power supply on Tuesday to avoid breakdown of a key transmission line after power consumption climbed nearly a quarter higher than a year earlier, the Shanghai Daily reported.

Temperatures in the city had nudged 38 degrees Celsius at the start of the week, and demand outpaced supply capacity by around 250 megawatts, the report added.

Neighbouring provinces struggling to keep their own lights on and engines running had no spare power to offer.

In Chongqing, at the centre of a drought that has reduced water levels in the country's longest river to the lowest since records began, businesses were told to suspend production in the afternoon and evening to ease pressure on the network.

Temperatures in the southwestern city exceeded 40 degrees Celsius, after a July when the average temperature stood at 31 degrees Celsius, more than 3 degrees above long-term averages.

But the China Meteorological Administration has forecast a cooler than usual start to the autumn for the city after a warm August.