China Extends Power Rationing for Factories in Drought

A tree trunk lies on the dried-up riverbed of the Jialing river, a tributary of the Yangtze, that is approaching record-low water levels in Chongqing, China, August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Peter
A tree trunk lies on the dried-up riverbed of the Jialing river, a tributary of the Yangtze, that is approaching record-low water levels in Chongqing, China, August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Peter
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China Extends Power Rationing for Factories in Drought

A tree trunk lies on the dried-up riverbed of the Jialing river, a tributary of the Yangtze, that is approaching record-low water levels in Chongqing, China, August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Peter
A tree trunk lies on the dried-up riverbed of the Jialing river, a tributary of the Yangtze, that is approaching record-low water levels in Chongqing, China, August 18, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

Power rationing that forced factories in China’s southwest to shut down has been extended through at least Thursday due to low water at hydroelectric dams, according to a notice reported by news outlets and a company announcement, adding to losses from the hottest, driest summer in decades.

The “tense situation” of power supplies in Sichuan province “has further intensified,” Tencent News reported Monday. There was no public announcement, but the report included a photo of the government notice to companies, The Associated Press reported.

The drought and heat have wilted crops and caused rivers including the giant Yangtze to shrink, disrupting cargo traffic. State media say the government will try to protect the autumn grain harvest, which is 75% of China’s annual total, by using chemicals to generate rain.

The disruption adds to challenges for the ruling Communist Party, which is trying to shore up sagging economic growth before a meeting in October or November when President Xi Jinping is expected to try to award himself a third five-year term as leader.

Factories in Sichuan that make processor chips, solar panels, auto components and other industrial goods were required to shut down or reduce activity last week to conserve power for homes as air-conditioning demand surged in temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit). Air-conditioning, elevators and lights were shut off in offices and shopping malls.

On Monday, LIER Chemical Co. said in an announcement through the stock exchange in the southern city of Shenzhen that its facilities in the cities of Jinyang and Guang'an in Sichuan received an order extending power rationing through Thursday.

Some companies said earlier that supplies to customers weren’t affected, while others said production would be depressed.

The city government of Shanghai said Tesla Ltd. and a major state-owned automaker suspended production due to disruption in supplies of components from Sichuan.

The government says this summer is China’s hottest and driest since it began keeping temperature and rainfall records in 1961.

Sichuan, with 94 million people, is especially hard-hit because it gets 80% of its power from hydroelectric dams. Other provinces rely more on coal-fired power, which isn’t affected.

Economists say if Sichuan reopens relatively soon, the national impact should be limited because the province accounts for only 4% of China’s industrial output.

In the neighboring megacity of Chongqing, bushfires were breaking out and stores shifted to nighttime hours to avoid the high temperatures.

The fire conditions are being fueled by a weekslong drought in the west of the country that is usually hot, humid and rainy in the summer.

Shopping centers would operate from 4 to 9 p.m. to relieve pressure on the electricity grid.

The official Xinhua News Agency said Monday more than 1,500 residents had been moved to shelters, while around 5,000 civilian and military personnel had been mobilized to put out the blazes.

Helicopters have been sent to drop water on the fires, supporting crews on the ground who have in the past been left to their own resources.

In 2019, a wildfire in the mountains of Sichuan province adjacent to Chongqing killed 30 firefighters and volunteers.

No deaths have yet been reported as a result of the heatwave, Xinhua said, although that could not be independently verified. Dehydration, stroke and other health issues can be triggered or exacerbated by temperatures that have exceeded 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) for the past week and longer.

Experts say China's record-high monthly temperatures and droughts are part of a trend linked to global warming.



Blue-Collar Pennsylvania Voters Could Be ‘Deciding Factor’ in US Election

 Judge of Elections for Westmont Borough No. 1 polling place Jovel Segear oversees technical difficulties with the ballot acceptance process on Election Day at the Westmont Grove in Johnstown, Pa., Cambria County, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Thomas Slusser/The Tribune-Democrat via AP)
Judge of Elections for Westmont Borough No. 1 polling place Jovel Segear oversees technical difficulties with the ballot acceptance process on Election Day at the Westmont Grove in Johnstown, Pa., Cambria County, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Thomas Slusser/The Tribune-Democrat via AP)
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Blue-Collar Pennsylvania Voters Could Be ‘Deciding Factor’ in US Election

 Judge of Elections for Westmont Borough No. 1 polling place Jovel Segear oversees technical difficulties with the ballot acceptance process on Election Day at the Westmont Grove in Johnstown, Pa., Cambria County, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Thomas Slusser/The Tribune-Democrat via AP)
Judge of Elections for Westmont Borough No. 1 polling place Jovel Segear oversees technical difficulties with the ballot acceptance process on Election Day at the Westmont Grove in Johnstown, Pa., Cambria County, on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Thomas Slusser/The Tribune-Democrat via AP)

Protecting and creating new jobs were among the most pressing issues for voters lining up to cast their ballots Tuesday in Erie, a competitive blue-collar Pennsylvania county with a formidable reputation for picking US election winners.

Mason Ken Thompson, 66, voted at Edison Elementary School in Erie, the main city in the Pennsylvania county of the same name whose 270,000 people -- voting in a tightly-contested swing state -- will have an outsized role in whether Kamala Harris or Donald Trump wins the White House.

"Manufacturing jobs have gone away from Erie. It's a big problem, and Trump hasn't helped that situation at all," said Thompson, who wore a camouflage baseball cap adorned with the US flag.

"I believe that Kamala is going to help the young people with housing," he added as a DJ played a roster of all-American hits while voters streamed into the school-turned-polling station.

Nearby, the Country Fair gas station handed free donuts to voters.

Erie is one of a handful of counties to have boomeranged between Democrat and Republican, voting for former president Barack Obama twice, then narrowly for Trump, before scraping out a Democratic win for President Joe Biden in 2020.

The path to victory for both former president Trump and Vice President Harris likely runs through Pennsylvania, and largely white- and working-class Erie in the state's northwestern corner encapsulates many of its top issues.

Pennsylvania has 19 electoral college votes, more than any of the other swing states which could go for either Harris or Trump, with polls showing them locked in a dead heat.

"I don't know how we became so important around here... we are like a deciding factor," said Marchelle Beason, 46, who also cast her vote at Edison Elementary.

Proudly sporting her "I voted" sticker, she said "way, way more people" were casting their ballot than in 2020.

- 'America comes first' -

As with many swing counties in the Keystone State, Erie was once a thriving industrial hub that has been hit by outsourcing and automation.

It is now increasingly reliant on the service sector, but is still home to many blue collar jobs.

"A lot of the young people are moving out and something to keep them in Erie is what we really need," voter Chris Quest, 69, told AFP on Monday after casting her early ballot.

Darlene Taylor, 56, said she wanted to "close the border" to protect US jobs.

"We don't need another four more years of high inflation, gas prices, (and) lying," said Taylor, who wore a homemade Trump T-shirt after also casting her vote at Edison Elementary.

"America comes first, and Harris is not going to support that."

In 2019, General Electric's rail vehicle building operations shut up shop in Erie, leaving a void in the city where generations of workers had punched in and out for the sprawling US "toasters to TV shows" conglomerate.

Wabtec, formed from the storied Westinghouse corporation, stepped in to continue making trains in the city -- but with far fewer employees than GE.

Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey recently announced $48 million for the Wabtec factory to develop hydrogen batteries for rail.

The timing was no accident.

Casey is locked in a bitter contest for reelection with Republican Dave McCormick, a race which could decide which party has control of the US Senate.

Wabtec worker Henry Miller said he wanted politicians who would "start helping people in our own city."

"I like Donald Trump to a point, but then again, he wouldn't even leave when they try to put him out," he added before climbing into his black pick-up truck, referring to Trump's refusal to accept his 2020 election loss.

Some voters have complained that postal ballots have not arrived, with election officials saying they will have to vote in person, blaming a supplier issue.

David Radcliff, 72, said the fiasco had not dented his confidence in the election's integrity.

"But I will never do mail-in ballots again," he said.