Winter has arrived, demand for power rises
(Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2004-12-28 09:06

Winter has finally arrived, local weathermen are expected to announce today.

The arrival of winter could force more companies to shift production to weekends or night hours to spread power use and cut peak demand to ensure a steady supply for residents, power officials said yesterday.

With temperatures hovering between 4.1 and 5 degrees Celsius yesterday, the standard was finally met to announce the arrival of winter. The season officially begins on the first of five consecutive days with daily average temperatures below 10 degrees.

The start of winter this year on December 23 is the season's latest arrival in 10 years, according to the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau. The long-awaited winter has created some problems for power suppliers.

Yesterday's cold weather boosted power demand to 12.74 million kilowatts, up nearly 13 percent from last winter's peak demand, according to the Shanghai Electric Power Co.

Demand spiked as local residents and companies cranked up their heaters, which accounts for more than one third of power used during peak times.

The city has ordered 8,000 companies to shift production to weekends to spread power use and cut peak demand during the week, and plans for more companies to shift production hours are in place as demand is expected to rise higher as more cold weather is expected, said Shanghai Electric spokesman Yu Qinde.

Temperatures today will drop to 1 degree overnight, with the daily high hitting 4 degrees.

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