China's hydropower output falls 0.3 pct during first two months
Shanghai. March 23. INTERFAX-CHINA - China's hydropower output totaled 68.7 terawatt hours (TWh) over the first two months of the year, down 0.3 percentage points year-on-year, according to statistics released by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) yesterday.
Prolonged drought, most notably in southwest China, was the primary factor behind the weakened output, the NDRC said.
2012 "water flow" of major Chinese rivers
| Name | Water flow over first two months |
| Daduhe River | Down 10-20% of yearly average |
| Yuanjiang River | Down 10-20% of yearly average |
| 2nd Songhua River | Down 40% of yearly average |
| Yayan River | Down 60% of yearly average |
| Wujiang River | Down 12% of yearly average |
| Lancangjiang River | Down 27% of yearly average |
Source: NDRC
The Yangtze River, the world's third longest river and home of the Three Gorges Dam, experienced its lowest water levels in 33 years last year, the China Meteorological Administration said in January.
Hydropower output should rebound with the approach of south China's rainy season, which runs from April to September, industry expert Liu Liye told Interfax today.
Drought conditions dragged China's 2011 hydropower output down 3.5 percent year-on-year to 662.6 TWh.
China leads the world in hydropower installed capacity and output, according to figures from the US Energy Information Administration. The nation's 2010 hydropower output, 713.79 TWh, topped North America's aggregate output the same year, 641.76 TWh.
Data released in January by the semi-governmental power industry agency China Electricity Council shows that the country's aggregate hydropower installed capacity topped 220 gigawatts (GW) by the end of last year, up six percent or 15 gigawatts (GW) over the previous year.
China's central government is forecasting an aggregate hydropower installed capacity of 300 GW by 2015 and 400 GW by 2020. On Tuesday, the NDRC announced the approval of five large-scale hydropower plants in southwest China.
-WV