Highlights Changing climate negatively impacts hydropower output Crucial to further expand power transmission, generation, storage capacities Energy security as top priority now, at the cost of climate policy China’s Sichuan province, long vaunted for its panda conservation and abundant hydropower exports, is suffering from the country’s most severe drought on record, raising concerns over the reliability of hydropower as a pillar for China’s decarbonization. Not registered? Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. Register Now The drought has caused power shortages which have impacted electricity supply to other eastern coastal provinces and snowballed into a crisis as critical clean technology and manufacturing industries have shut capacity to divert electricity for residential use. “In the short-term very little can be done to adjust to losses of hydropower production. Over the longer term, power sector reform is vital to bring about a more efficient power system,” Dan Klein, […]