Coal reserves fall 12% from March

China’s stockpile of coal has fallen 12% to 46.7 million tons since last month, lowering the number of days the country could be powered on its reserves to 12 days, a new low, state media reported. Wang Yeping, vice chairman of the China Electricity Regulatory Commission, also said coal inventories for plants in Anhui, Chongqing and Hebei were at less than one week, as of April 20. Wang said there were many reasons for the shortage but did not elaborate. He added that the government was taking steps to address the shortage. Coal-fired power accounts for more than 70% of the electricity consumed in China.