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SOME cargo ships used overseas have been called back or refitted to join a nationwide coal transport drive as many parts of China are now on the verge of losing power.
Supplies are low as snowstorms have largely disrupted rail and road shipments of the fuel.
China Cosco Co has recalled 11 cargo ships from its oversea routes while China Shipping Co also transformed four oil tankers in order to transport coal to energy-starved regions, Fu Jinxiu, a senior official of the Ministry of Communications has said, Xinhua news agency reported today.
The China Cosco ships have a combined capacity of 760,000 tons while the oil tankers can carry a total of 80,000 tons of coal, the report said.
Two of the oil tankers have already been put into use, the report added.
About five percent of the country's coal fired power plants have been shut down, forcing 13 provinces to ration electricity as snowfalls and transport delays hamper deliveries.
The five biggest electricity producers have shut 90 power stations – with a combined capacity of more than 20,000 megawatts – in northern and central China, the State Grid said yesterday. Coal stockpiles at the plants have dropped below the "caution line" of three days' requirements.
China, the world's biggest coal producer, burns the fuel to generate about 78 percent of its electricity. Railway congestion as millions of Chinese travel before the Lunar New Year holiday and heavy snowfalls have contributed to the lack of coal, according to previous reports.
Blackouts today hit most parts of Guizhou as the province declared a second-level emergency to cope with the lack of electricity.
Continuous snowfalls have damaged several major electricity facilities in Guizhou since January 13 and left residents cold and in the dark.
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