China is facing its worst-ever power shortage as winter weather puts pressure on dwindling coal supplies. Officials say reserves are down to emergency levels with only enough coal to power the entire country for another eight days. According to state media the shortage amounts to nearly 70 gigawatts, equivalent to about the entire generating capacity of the United Kingdom. Across China 13 provinces including the southern industrial and export hub of Guangdong, have already begun rationing supplies, tiggering brown-outs across large areas. Coal provides 78 per cent of China’s energy needs, and the country is the world’s biggest producer and consumer of coal. In recent years the soaring demand for coal energy and the potential profits available has driven many mine owners to reopen illegal or unsafe mines, making China’s mining industry the deadliest in the world. In response the government has launched a series of crackdowns, closing mines across the country that fail to conform to basic safety standards and putting a further squeeze on supplies. But the demand for coal remains insatiable. As China’s economy surges ahead and its population gets richer – buying more fridges, heaters, air conditioners and […]