Toyota Motor Corp. and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. , the world’s top battery maker, are closing plants in China’s Sichuan province as a drought-induced power crisis worsens. The Japanese automaker shut a factory in the provincial capital of Chengdu and will keep operations suspended until Aug. 20, a company spokesperson said. Contemporary Amperex halted activity at its major lithium battery base in Yibin through the same date, a local business publication reported . Sichuan, one of China’s most populous provinces, is highly reliant on hydropower. That makes it particularly vulnerable to a heat wave and drought that’s pushing up air-conditioning demand and drying up reservoirs behind hydro dams. It’s a key manufacturing hub and is also important for the production of materials including polysilicon and lithium that are vital to the […]