Electricity consumption across the society increased by 11% year-on-year, presenting a rapid growth trend overall. The electricity consumption of multiple strategic emerging industries in the five provinces and regions in the south all presented double-digit growth, and the charging and swapping service industry related to green consumption achieved a year-on-year growth rate of 62%. The installed capacity of solar and wind power nationwide increased by 56.9% and 21.3% year-on-year respectively... In the first two months of this year, a series of electric power data showed a trend of "upward, innovative, and green". China's economic growth is accelerating the release of new potential.

Located in the Huangpu District of Guangzhou, the China-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City features a cluster of high-tech industrial parks such as semiconductors and biopharmaceuticals, with various laboratories and R&D platforms vying to outdo each other.

In the current year, the electricity consumption in Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City has been continuously rising; the electricity consumption from January to February increased by 52.6% compared to the previous year. According to Chen Yiyin, a specialist in the data management department of the customer service center of Southern Power Grid Guangdong Guangzhou Power Supply Bureau, the electricity consumption of the new energy automobile industrial cluster represented by Xiaopeng Motors increased by 68.5%, the electricity consumption of the biopharmaceutical industrial cluster represented by BeiGene, Innovent Bio and Kangfang Bio increased by 40.2%, and the electricity consumption of the integrated circuit industrial cluster represented by Guoxin Microelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. increased by 28.1%.

Electricity data are the "barometer" and "wind vane" reflecting economic operation. This year is a crucial year for achieving the "14th Five-Year" plan goals and tasks. Many places have introduced consecutive measures to boost consumption and work hard to grasp production. The overall electricity consumption has shown a rapid growth trend.

According to data from the National Energy Administration, China's total electricity consumption reached 1.53 trillion kWh in the first two months of this year, an 11% year-on-year increase. By industry, electricity consumption in the primary industry, secondary industry, tertiary industry, and rural and urban life increased by 11.1%, 9.7%, 15.7%, and 10.5%, respectively, year-on-year.

On March 26, Yang Kun, Executive Vice Chairman of China Electricity Council (CEC), indicated at the 2024 Economic Situation and Electric Power Development Analysis and Forecast Conference (the "Forecast Conference") that China's economy would continue to improve and rebound, and in 2024, the supply and demand of electric power nationwide would remain in a tight balance. Along with the full-scale promotion of the modernization drive, the demand for electric power will continue to witness rigid growth in the years to come.

Emerging industries serve as a new growth driver for electricity consumption. Taking the five provinces and autonomous regions of Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Hainan as an example, the electricity consumption of high-tech and equipment manufacturing industries reached 16.9% from January to February, 8.8 percentage points higher than that of energy-intensive industries. Among them, power consumption of key industries in strategic emerging industries, such as special equipment manufacturing, automobile manufacturing, electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, computers, communications, and electronics equipment manufacturing, all showed double-digit growth.

Driven by new scenarios, new formats, and new models, green consumption is also becoming increasingly popular. For example, from January to February, the electricity consumption of battery swap services in five provinces and regions increased by 62% year-on-year.

Electricity generation is also becoming greener, with clean energy production gradually increasing. From the slowly rotating wind turbine blades on the coast of the East China Sea to the rows of photovoltaic panels connected in the northwestern desert, and then to the world's largest clean energy corridor on the Yangtze River, they are all charging and storing energy for the Chinese economy.

According to the latest data from the National Energy Administration, as of the end of February this year, the total installed power generation capacity in China was approximately 2.97 billion kilowatts, an increase of 14.7% year-on-year. Of this, the installed capacity of solar power generation is about 650 million kilowatts, up by 56.9% year-on-year; the installed capacity of wind power is about 450 million kilowatts, an increase of 21.3% year-on-year.

According to Liu Shijin, former Vice Minister of the Development Research Center of the State Council, the changes in electricity data reflect the transformation and upgrading of the entire industry, and also highlight the growth potential of the Chinese economy.

Liu Shijin said at the China Electricity Council's prediction conference that this year, in order to achieve about 5% of GDP growth in China's economy, the most important thing is to tap the new growth potential of the Chinese economy. Firstly, it is about pursuing the potential, which involves the things that developed economies have done but we haven’t but have the conditions and capability to do, mainly the development of service industries driven by consumption structure upgrades, as well as the stabilization and upgrades of the manufacturing industry and agriculture; secondly, it is about the potential generated by digital technologies and green transformation as driven by the new technological revolution. Pursuing potential and digital and green potential are not two separate tracks, but rather should be integrated. In this way, China's new technology development will have a larger market capacity and longer growth opportunities than mature economies, reducing costs faster through economies of scale and, in turn, forming new competitive advantages in terms of technology and industries.

Taking into account the overall macroeconomic situation, the terminal electricity used in the electrification, and other factors, the China Electricity Council predicts that in 2024, in terms of electricity consumption, the national electricity consumption will reach 9.8 trillion kWh, an increase of about 6% compared with 2023. The maximum regulated national electricity load will reach 1.45 billion KW, an increase of about 100 million kW compared with 2023. In terms of electricity supply, the newly launched power generation equipment in 2024 will exceed 300 million kW, and by the end of 2024, the national power generation equipment capacity will reach 3.25 billion kW, an increase of about 12% year-on-year. Specifically, the non-fossil fuel power generation equipment will reach about 1.86 billion kW, accounting for about 57% of the total installed capacity. Among them, the new energy power generation equipment will reach about 1.3 billion kW, surpassing the scale of coal power generation equipment for the first time, accounting for about 40% of the total installed capacity. (Wang Lu)

From Economic Information Daily