In the third quarter this year, China's electricity shortage is expected to hit a maximum volume of 25 million kilowatts, Spokesman Wang Yonggan with the China Electricity Council (CEC) said Friday at a press conference.

In the third quarter, the power shortage in coastal Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces may reach 6 million kilowatts, while Shanghai's power shortage may hit 2.8 to 3.3 million kilowatts, Wang said. Guangdong Province's power shortage is expected to be around 1.5 million kilowatts.

In the fourth quarter this year, China's power shortage will be reduced to 10 million kilowatts, because many more generating units will be put into production, he said.

In 2005 China's total power consumption is expected to hit 2456 billion kilowatt hours, up 13 percent year on year, he said.

Source: Xinhua