Energy

China June power demand growth slows sharply

(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-07-05 11:38

China's power consumption growth in June slowed down sharply, as power use in the country's heavy industry trended lower, the Shanghai Securities News said on Monday.

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Growth in June power consumption fell significantly, after exceeding 20 percent yea-on-year for the first five months of the year, the paper said, quoting an official familiar with the data, without giving further details.

Demand from heavy industry accounted for 62 percent of total power consumption in the first five months of the year, official data showed.

Severe summer power shortages are unlikely to happen this year as government policies to curb excessive growth in energy-intensive industries take effect, and as supply is expected to remain stable, Xue Jing, head of the statistics department of the China Electricity Council, was quoted as saying by the paper.

But power shortages could still occur in areas with insufficient installed power capacity or coal supply, Xue warned.

Spot thermal coal prices in Qinhuangdao, China's top coal port, remained unchanged through June.