Since the beginning of summer, the nation’s daily power generation and unified electricity load have risen rapidly.

Electricity consumption hits a record high and economic recovery momentum is good (Rui Finance)

  Our reporter Wang Wenzheng

  The highest load of Jiangsu power grid exceeded 100 million kilowatts 5 times, the highest load of Zhejiang power grid hit a record high 6 times, and the load of 12 provincial power grids including Hubei reached a record high 30 times... Since the beginning of summer, the national daily power generation and unified electricity load have been repeated At a new high, the social electricity consumption, which is regarded as the "barometer" of economic operation, is rising vigorously, reflecting the trend of China's economic recovery.

  Fast recovery of electricity consumption

  Entering August, the country's daily power generation and unified electricity load have risen rapidly, reaching a new high. According to data from the National Development and Reform Commission, as of the 17th, the country’s daily power generation reached a maximum of 24.6 billion kilowatt-hours, 686 million kilowatt-hours higher than last year's peak; and the maximum unified electricity load reached 1.076 billion kilowatts, which was 24 million kilowatts higher than last year's peak.

  "Preliminary analysis shows that the country's daily power generation and uniform electricity load have reached new highs. The impact of the continuous high temperature, sunny and hot weather leading to the rapid increase in air conditioning load also reflects the continued steady recovery of the national economy." said Meng Wei, a spokesperson for the National Development and Reform Commission. .

  The steady recovery of traditional manufacturing is directly reflected in the demand for consumption. According to data from the Energy Development Research Institute of China Southern Power Grid, from January to July, the manufacturing industry in the five southern provinces increased by 1.0% year-on-year, an acceleration of 2.3 percentage points from the first half of the year, and the growth rate has changed from negative to positive. Among them, the power consumption of high-tech and equipment manufacturing, which is closely related to the “new infrastructure”, rebounded strongly. In May, June, and July, it increased by 6.8%, 10.7%, and 10.8% year-on-year, respectively. The rapid growth for three consecutive months led the industrial growth.

  In addition, the growth rate of electricity consumption in most consumer goods manufacturing industries has turned from negative to positive, reflecting the steady recovery of domestic consumption. According to Yang Jing from the Energy Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomics, in the second quarter, power consumption in the consumer goods manufacturing industry increased by 46.1% month-on-month; down by 1.3% year-on-year, the rate of decline narrowed by 18.6 percentage points from the first quarter. Among them, power consumption in the consumer goods manufacturing industry achieved positive growth in June, an increase of 1.9% year-on-year; power consumption in some industries rebounded sharply, even reaching double-digit growth rates. For example, the electricity consumption of food manufacturing, beverage manufacturing, furniture manufacturing and tobacco manufacturing, which are mainly based on the domestic market, increased by 18.1%, 10.0%, 10.0% and 8.2% year-on-year respectively.

  Power investment is growing fast

  Electricity demand and grid load continue to climb peaks, is the power supply "sufficient"?

  In terms of output, production capacity and equipment utilization, power supply is stable and guaranteed. Looking at output, power generation continues to grow. In July, the national industrial power generation above designated size increased by 1.9% year-on-year. Among them, hydropower, nuclear power, and wind power generation increased by 6.1%, 6.7%, and 23.2% respectively. Looking at production capacity, installed power generation capacity maintained a year-on-year growth momentum. As of the end of July, the nationwide installed power generation capacity of 6,000 kilowatts and above reached 1.95 billion kilowatts, a year-on-year increase of 6.7%. Looking at the degree of equipment utilization, from January to July, the cumulative average utilization hours of power generation equipment nationwide was 2,074 hours, 111 hours lower than the same period last year.

  Since the beginning of summer, in the face of rising power demand, the power supply side has continued to exert force. According to data from the State Grid, this summer, two regional power grids in East China and Southwest China and 15 provincial-level power grids have reached a record high in electricity load. Coupled with the frequent occurrence of heavy rains, typhoons, and lightning in summer, power grids in many places were damaged in severe weather. serious. In the face of the epidemic and inclement weather, the majority of cadres and employees of the State Grid have withstood multiple tests, effectively guaranteeing electricity consumption for production and life during peak electricity consumption. At present, the overall operation of power grids across the country is stable.

  Electronics investment is growing rapidly, and the power industry has ample momentum for development. According to the national power industry statistics from January to July released by the National Energy Administration, from January to July, the country’s newly installed power generation capacity was 54.09 million kilowatts, an increase of 7.01 million kilowatts year-on-year; the investment in power supply projects was 213.9 billion yuan, an increase of 51.0% year-on-year Among them, wind power was 111.2 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 164.0%; investment in power grid projects was 205.3 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1.6%; the length of newly added transmission lines of 220 kV and above was about 19,000 kilometers, an increase of 899 kilometers from the previous year.

  Rapid growth of electricity consumption in new industries

  Behind the rapid growth of electricity consumption, it also reflects the trend of China's economic development towards higher quality.

  Electricity substitution has driven significant growth in electricity demand, and economic development has become more "green". Data shows that since the beginning of this year, electricity substitution has continued to maintain a large-scale growth. Through strengthening the construction of port shore power, charging and other facilities to promote the use of electricity to replace coal and electricity to replace oil, the scale of electricity replacement in the first half of the year reached about 110 billion kWh. According to statistics, as of the end of June, the number of various charging piles in China has reached 1.322 million, of which 558,000 are public charging piles, ranking first in the world.

  High-tech industries have large demand for electricity, and new momentum for economic development is highlighted. In the second quarter, high-tech and equipment manufacturing power consumption increased by 4.6% year-on-year, which exceeded the growth rate of industrial power consumption by approximately 2 percentage points. Among them, compared with April, the year-on-year growth rate of electricity consumption in high-tech industries in May and June rebounded rapidly to 5.4% and 8.4%, respectively. In July, electricity consumption in the automobile manufacturing industry increased by 20.3% year-on-year, and the growth rate of electricity consumption in the computer communications and other electronic equipment manufacturing, general equipment manufacturing, electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing industries also exceeded double digits.

  The electricity consumption of new business forms has surged, and the economic development is full of new ideas. Yang Jing introduced that in the first half of the year, the electricity consumption of the network information service industry, which relies on new technologies such as big data, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things, increased by 27.7% year-on-year. Among them, the electricity consumption of the Internet data service industry surged by 71.6% year-on-year, reflecting the rapid spread of new methods such as online education and online meetings.

  "The rapid recovery of electricity consumption in the high-tech equipment manufacturing industry and the'fast running' of electricity consumption in the network information service industry demonstrate the resilience and potential of China's economy from one side." Yu Chongde, full-time vice chairman and secretary-general of the China Electricity Council Said that the monthly increase in electricity consumption is due to the rising temperature, but the gradual recovery of the economy as a whole and strong support from new momentum are the main reasons.