China Electricity Council official expects 4-6% growth in electricity consumption in 2013

Reuters reported that Liu Xiangdong, a deputy director of the China Electricity Council, estimates that the nation's electricity consumption growth will reach 4-6% in 2013, lower than the previous estimates of 9% by the State Electricity Regulatory Commission. China consumed 4.96 trillion kwh of electricity in 2012, representing an increase of 5.5% over 2011. In the first quarter of 2013, the growth in electricity demand reached 4.25% to 1.21 trillion kwh.