Energy crisis in China: Toyota and Amperex close their factories to save electricity
The worst heat wave in decades is limiting hydroelectric power generation in one of the country's most populous provinces. Local authorities have asked some factories in southwest China to shut down production to save electricity, increasing the financial pressures of an already rapidly slowing economy. Sichuan province has more than 80 million inhabitants and is home to an important manufacturing hub. According to the Washington Post , some factories have suspended production at the request of the government due to high temperatures and drought, which has led to less water flows in local hydroelectric reservoirs.
Toyota Motor Corp. and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., the world's largest battery manufacturer, join the growing list of companies that have closed their factories in the Chinese province of Sichuan due to the deepening energy crisis , Bloomberg reported. due to drought. The ironic touch is that, without electricity, electric cars can't even be produced.
Toyota closed its plant in the provincial capital of Chengdu until Saturday, a company spokesman said, while Contemporary Amperex shut down operations at its lithium battery factory in Yibin.
Sichuan is one of the most populated provinces in China, with 80 million inhabitants, and is home to an important manufacturing hub heavily dependent on hydroelectric power deriving from dams on large rivers.
Closures add to the growing number of industries ranging from solar panels to aluminum smelting. Volkswagen AG said on Monday that its Chengdu factory is suffering from an energy shortage, but that it expects only slight delays in deliveries to customers. Foxconn Technology Co. also manufactures Apple iPads in the province, but said the impact of the drought has so far been limited, although it is forced to close the plant for a few days.
Jin Xiandong, a spokesman for the National Development and Reform Commission, said on Tuesday that China needs to increase coal-fired power generation due to declining hydroelectric power generation.
The internal Chinese province of Sichuan is an important manufacturing hub that produces consumer goods, from electronics to furniture to food. In addition, it is home to the largest manufacturer of crystalline silicon solar cells in the world. So the water crisis risks having repercussions on a multitude of industrial sectors.
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The article Energy crisis in China: Toyota and Amperex close their factories to save electricity comes from ScenariEconomici.it .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/crisi-energetica-in-cina-toyota-e-amperex-chiudono-gli-stabilimenti-per-risparmiale-elettricita/ on Wed, 17 Aug 2022 16:31:53 +0000.