Chinese switch to flashlights, generators amid power cuts
ABC News
People were eating breakfast by flashlight and shopkeepers turned on generators as cities across China enforce power cuts to meet official conservation targets
SHENYANG, China -- People ate breakfast by the light of smartphones and shopkeepers turned on generators as cities across China enforced power cuts Wednesday to meet official conservation targets and ease shortages in some areas.
News reports blame high coal prices they say make power companies reluctant to meet booming demand, while economists say the real motive is political: Officials are under pressure to curtail energy use to meet official targets.
In Shenyang, the northeast's most populous city, restaurant owner Li Yufeng used a battery from an electric bicycle to run a pot for noodles after seeing a notice power would be switched off at 7:30 a.m. Li said he started work two hours early, at 6 a.m., to prepare chicken, sauces and other dishes.
“There are some impacts, but not a big impact,” said Li as customers ate by smartphone lights.
