Hangzhou's Energy Conservation Amid Record Heatwaves

Hangzhou, a major Chinese city, banned nonessential landscape lighting to conserve energy amidst extreme heat. The temperature has surpassed 40 degrees Celsius, increasing electricity demand. Power grids in Shanghai and surrounding areas also faced unprecedented loads. Officials are ensuring the safe operation of essential services.

The megacity of Hangzhou, home to some of China's largest companies, has banned all nonessential landscape lighting this week to conserve energy as extreme heat pushes up demand for electricity and air-conditioning, testing power grids. Hangzhou, the capital of eastern Zhejiang province, will also suspend all light shows across the city of 12.5 million people through to Friday, local authorities said in a statement on Tuesday.

Known for its entrepreneurs and tech giants such as Alibaba and NetEase, Hangzhou has been sweltering under temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) since Aug. 2. Eastern and southern China are battling what local meteorologists describe as a 'protracted war' with record high temperatures. In nearby Shanghai, the maximum load, or demand, on its power grid exceeded 40 million kilowatts for the first time on Aug. 2, as heat waves boosted electricity consumption in the city of nearly 25 million people.

Shanghai leads the country in power load density, with the city's core Lujiazui area consuming twice the power per square kilometer compared to New York's Manhattan or Tokyo's Ginza district, according to its grid operator. As Hangzhou's own power grids hit new highs, officials said they would implement a 'practical' and 'refined' power supply guarantee plan to ensure the normal operation of functional lighting in public spaces and safeguard the safety of nighttime travel.

Chinese meteorologists attribute the record heat in 2024 to global warming, despite the cooling effects of the La Nina weather phenomenon. After the warmest spring since 1961, China experienced the hottest May followed by weeks of drought-like conditions in central farmland regions.

High temperatures in Shanghai and the provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Anhui are expected to persist until Aug. 11, forecasters said on Tuesday. Fatalities have been reported in neighboring South Korea and Japan as powerful summer heat enveloped northeast Asia. China has yet to announce if there have been any deaths from the extreme heat.

(With inputs from agencies.)