Central China is expected to face a 16-million-kilowatt (kw) power shortage during the coming winter, the China Electricity Council said Saturday.

The forecast lent some support to an earlier report that predicted a 30-million-kw shortage for the winter, as coal supplies for thermal plants are expected to fall short.

The shortage in Hunan Province will be particularly serious, as the province's coal inventory stood at just under 1.3 million metric tons after the summer electricity consumption peak, or just slightly more than is required to fuel the province's power plants.

Rural areas will have to deal with the dual trials of coal shortages and increased power demands. Hunan will see a peak demand of 20 million kw this winter, up 18 percent year-on-year, the council said. This will leave the province with a five-million-kw supply gap, according to the council.

The provincial government has lowered fees for coal producers and offered an extra bonus for power companies that exceed their production quotas, according to local authorities.

Wei Shaofeng, deputy director of the council, said in August that China will face power crunches over the next few years, as a lack of electricity will hit a wider range of areas.

The country is expected to face a power shortage up to 70 million kw in 2013, an increase over the 50-million-kw shortage seen in 2012, he said.

China's power consumption totaled more than 2.2 trillion kilowatt-hours in the first half of the year, up 12.2 percent year-on-year.