Power supply feels the heat in scorching summer

BEIJING -- Persistent high temperatures and humidity in northern China are putting pressure on regional power supply, as power consumption in large cities hit record high.

The National Meteorological Center (NMC) Thursday issued an orange alert for the heat wave, as temperatures rise above 35 degrees centigrade in various areas, including parts of Hebei, Beijing, Henan, Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Gansu, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Shanghai, Zhejiang and Hubei.

A number of those areas could see temperatures surpass 40 degrees, according to the meteorological agency.

The summer heat wave has been baking the country's northern regions since the beginning of the week, causing power supply tension.

In Beijing and Tianjin, the maximum load on local power grid on Wednesday reached 21.2 million kilowatt-hours and 14.8 million kilowatt-hours respectively, both a historic high.

Nevertheless, China's power supply will remain sufficient for the next three years, according to a recent forecast from an industrial think tank.

The country's power consumption is likely to reach between 6.65 trillion and 6.93 trillion kilowatt-hours in 2019, said the Electric Power Planning and Engineering Institute, a think tank under the state-owned China Energy Engineering Group.

The prediction is based on the country's power development goals, the level of power exchange between regions, and controlling plans on coal-fired power, the institute said in a report.