China’s Solar Surge Is Making a Missing Power Data Problem Worse
- Rapid uptake in rooftop solar isn’t counted in monthly figures
- Widening gap could lead to underestimation of economic growth
Although electricity production accounts for a relatively small portion of the economy, the discrepancy is only likely to get bigger as China installs more clean energy.
Photographer: Andrea Verdelli/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The boom in renewable energy installations in China is exacerbating a problem measuring power production data in the world’s second largest economy.
The gap between electricity consumption, as measured by the National Energy Administration, and power production calculated by the National Bureau of Statistics grew to 46.5 billion kilowatt-hours in March. That means 6.2% of power generation was missing from monthly output statistics that investors and policymakers use to assess important economic growth factors like gross domestic product.