Shanghai, Aug 22 (FN Agency) The iconic skyline in Chinese city of Shanghai — called The Bund — will not be lit for two nights to save power, officials say. Elsewhere in China, major manufacturers in the Sichuan province told the BBC they had been hit by power cuts. Large parts of the world’s second largest economy face a severe drought amid a record-breaking heatwave. In a notice on Sunday, the Shanghai Landscaping and City Appearance Administrative Bureau said buildings in the Bund, which are located along the city’s largest river, will not be lit on Monday and Tuesday. The waterfront area — known for its mix of historical and futuristic buildings — is a popular tourist destination.
“We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause,” it said in the notice. China issued its first national drought alert of the year last week after areas including Shanghai in the Yangtze Delta region and Sichuan in southwest China experienced weeks of extreme heat. The ‘yellow alert’ is the third most severe level on the official scale. Officials in the Sichuan province, where the mercury exceeded 40 degrees Celsius, said that rising temperatures and low rainfall, along with increased demand for air conditioning, had caused the power shortages.
The province has extended its power saving measures by five days to Thursday, according to media reports. These limit the power supply to some industrial businesses. German carmaker Volkswagen told the BBC that its factory in Chengdu – which is the capital of Sichuan – remains shut. Japanese auto giant Toyota told the BBC it was gradually resuming production in Sichuan “utilising in-house power generation”. Authorities have moved to induce rainfall in parts of central and southwest China amid a heatwave, which is the longest on record for the country.