Zhejiang, Beijing in power dispute

Zhejiang province is at odds with Beijing regarding its plan to build 25 new power plants this year, a result of the coastal province's surging power needs and central government concerns over runaway growth, according to a report in the South China Morning Post. The report said that Zhejiang was prepared to defy limits on power construction set by Beijing. Zhejiang said that in the first nine months of 2003 it experienced 160,000 power cuts which resulted in US$3.26 billion in lost production and shaving 2.4 percentage points from its GDP growth. The State Development and Reform Commission has been wary of approving projects such as the US$6.04 billion power production capacity expansion that is already underway in Zhejiang.