The coal price rose sharply and the power plant was losing money. The power plant had no money to buy coal.

With the rapid rise in domestic coal prices, Zhu Chaohuang, general manager of Wuxi Xielian Thermal Power Company, is facing tremendous pressure.

“The more power generation, the more losses, and now companies can only provide more heat, otherwise it will be difficult to maintain.” On November 10, when talking to reporters about recent coal prices, Zhu Chaohuang could not help but be able to Production concerns.

On November 9, the coal price of the 5800 kcal at Qinhuangdao Port was 820-830 yuan per ton, up 10 yuan from the previous day and 25.1% from the same period of last year. The coal prices of other 5,000 kcal and 5,500 kcal also rose about 25% year-on-year respectively.

If you consider the transportation costs, such as the 5800 kcal Datong high-mixed raw coal, the price per ton will exceed 1,000 yuan, such coal prices for power companies, means the basic loss of profit space.

However, despite the ferocious rise in coal, the coal stocks in ports and major power plants are still relatively abundant. National Development and Reform Commission data show that as of October 31, Qinhuangdao Port deposits 7.1 million tons of coal, an increase of 600,000 tons from the end of September; National key power plant coal reserves of 62.76 million tons, an increase of 2.17 million tons than the end of September, available days 21 days.

On November 9, there were 180-190 loading vessels at the port of Qinhuangdao, which was a normal level. At the same time, the average daily train transported coal was more than 7,000 vehicles, and there was no significant increase.

Coal prices are not commensurate with actual demand and can also be seen from changes in electricity consumption. In September of this year, the electricity consumption of the entire society fell by 12% from August, the lowest point for single month electricity consumption since November 2009.

The fourth quarter electricity report released recently by the CEC pointed out that considering the factors such as energy conservation and emission reduction assessment entering the final stage, it is expected that the growth rate of electricity consumption will be lower in the fourth quarter, and the growth rate of monthly electricity consumption in most provinces will continue to decline. Even negative growth.

Wang Siqiang, deputy director of the Comprehensive Division of the National Energy Administration, said that out of 12% of the 12% decline in electricity consumption in September in the whole society, 6 percentage points could reflect “structural optimization”. In the same month, the absolute value of the second industry's electricity consumption fell to 91% of the absolute value of the entire society's electricity consumption.

Faced with the rapid rise in coal prices, power system personnel once again recommended that the country take measures to address the current long-term loss of power companies.

Zhu Chaohuang told reporters that after the rise in coal prices, both the sales price and the grid price did not move. Considering the affordability of the residents, the sales price could be temporarily impaired. “However, the price of electricity for electricity generation may change somewhat. Problems that do not produce."

"If the price of electric power is less than a little, you can, but you can't move for a long time," he said.

Since the National Development and Reform Commission promulgated the coal price linkage mechanism in 2004, the country has implemented four coal price linkages, but there is still a large gap. According to a report from China Electro-Optical Union, since 2003, the price of coal in China has continued to rise. The price of 5,500 kcal coal in Qinhuangdao has risen by more than 150%, while the increase in sales price of electricity has only risen by 32%.

As the electricity price did not implement fuller linkage with coal prices, thermal power companies suffered serious losses.

Data show that from January to August, affected by the tail-kicking effect of sales price adjustment at the end of last year, the total profit of the power industry was 97.2 billion yuan, an increase of 108.5% year-on-year, but the profits of thermal power companies dropped from 26.8 billion yuan to 22 billion yuan in the same period of last year. Yuan, the six provinces in central China, and Shandong Province all continued to suffer losses in thermal power, and newly added three thermal power plants in the three northeastern provinces all suffered losses.

Coal prices continued to rise year-on-year, which is the fundamental reason for the decline in profits and the increase in operating pressure. In particular, thermal power companies in coal-producing provinces with low on-grid tariffs have suffered more serious losses and have continued to deteriorate.

Xue Jing, director of the Statistical Department of the CEC, said that if the electricity price does not link with coal prices, then it would need to limit the price of coal. The National Development and Reform Commission should immediately take measures, because now the power plant coal inventory is still about 20 days, after this time, in the case of such high prices of coal, power companies will not be able to buy coal, whether sustainable power generation will become a problem.

"Especially in January next year, if the weather suddenly becomes cold, coal may not be available in the short term," she said.

Huang Teng, an analyst at Beijing Changmao Consultation Co., Ltd., believes that the state should solve the problem of some coal traders speculating on speculation. Due to this year’s “Millennium Cold Wave”, a large number of traders have taken the opportunity to hoard coal and expect to earn huge profits.

Due to continuous losses, power companies' solvency is being weakened. At the same time, corporate financing is increasingly difficult. At present, the northern heating period is about to begin, but some power plants have no money to buy coal.