Backgrounder: Electric power in China
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-03-12 15:50

BEIJING - China has announced a creation of a high-level body to integrate its energy management supervision and policies, functions that are currently dispersed among many government agencies.

The following are basic information about electric power in the country.

China had a total installed capacity of 713.29 million kilowatts at the end of 2007, up 14.36 percent year-on-year.

Coal-fired power and hydropower accounted for 78 percent and 20 percent, respectively, of the total, according to the China Electricity Council, an industry association under the State Electricity Regulatory Commission.

In 2007, total electricity supply reached 3.26 trillion kilowatt hours, up 14 percent year-on-year, 83 percent of which was thermal power, 15 percent hydropower and 2 percent nuclear power. Power consumption in the same year stood at 3.25 trillion kw/h, up 14.42 percent from 2006.

To save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, China has been building large-capacity coal-fired power plants while closing small ones. The State Council, China's cabinet, has set a goal of shutting down 50 million kw of thermal power capacity between 2006 and 2010.

The country closed 553 small thermal power generators last year, with a total capacity of 14.38 million kw, or 44 percent above the goal. It plans to shut down more this year, targeting a total capacity of 13 million kw, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.

Faced with an energy crunch resulting from fast economic growth, China has decided to develop more nuclear power. By 2020, the nation will have an installed nuclear power capacity of 40 million kw, accounting for 4 percent of total capacity.

China has 11 nuclear generators at six nuclear power stations, all located along the eastern coast, with a combined installed capacity of 9.08 million kw.