Post by
no1coalking on Jan 30, 2008 1:19pm
Power Shortage:
CHINA: Heavy snowfall shows country's vulnerabilities (01/30/2008)
A series of strong winter storms hitting east, central and southern China is highlighting some of the booming economies vulnerabilities as electricity and transportation falter.
Many cities are shrouded in darkness as portions of the country's antiquated power grid -- fired mostly by coal -- began to shut down. The country's leaders decided yesterday to deploy more than 450,000 army troops and extra units of police to clear roads and provide supplies for millions.
The power loss has forced many of the country's mining and metals companies to virtually shut down, causing $3 billion in economic losses for China since the storms began Jan. 10, the Civil Affairs Ministry reported yesterday.
The transportation challenge has been part of the power loss, officials say, because of the difficulty transporting coal to the country's power stations. But the larger issue is the rising cost of coal in a country that depends on it for its power (Richard McGregor, Financial Times [subscription required], Jan. 30).
Rail transportation has also been hampered, which could mean disaster early next month when an estimated 178.6 million people will travel to China for the Lunar New Year.
The snow and ice storms are expected to continue for the next three days, according to the China Meteorological Administration (Kurtenbach/Foreman, AP/San Francisco Chronicle online, Jan. 30). -- EB
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