Workers at the State Grid Corporation braved the scorching sun to carry out line work in Fengyang, East China's Anhui Province on Tuesday. Technicians from the company overcame difficulties such as the short distance between the lines to ensure normal electricity use for local residents and production during the summer peak. Photo: cnsphoto

Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong Province, reported a brief black-out Monday morning, gaining broad online attention against the backdrop of a few southern provinces cutting their power supply to save energy. But the Guangzhou outrage was caused by an electricity wire fault and electricity supply was restored quickly.

The blackout became a trending topic on Twitter-like Sina Weibo on Monday, as many netizens were concerned whether it's a clear sign reflecting China's energy shortage.

Staff at two hotels in Liwan district in Guangzhou confirmed to the Global Times that they did experience temporary black-out Monday morning. "The black-out lasted for a short while and lights turned on a few minutes later," a hotel receptionist said. She said that the black-out happened in the early morning so hotel check-in, check-out activities were not affected.

"As far as I know, electric wire line maintenance work undertaken by the power company caused the black-out," said the receptionist.

A worker at China Southern Power Grid's Guangzhou branch told the Global Times that the power failure occurred between 12 pm and 2 am was due to electric wire short circuit caused by equipment failure, affecting some neighborhoods in Baiyun and Liwan districts in Guangzhou.

The worker refuted rumors claiming that a tight electricity supply led to the outrage. "The problem of equipment failure has been fixed and electricity supply was stored by 2 am," he said.

Residents in Guangzhou told the Global Times on Monday that they've seen no signs of power shortage, and they did not experience the black-out. "My home in Tianhe district and my office in Yuexiu district are all running normally," a local resident surnamed Luo told the Global Times on Monday.

Luo said due to a recent sudden drop in temperatures in Guangzhou, she even turned on electric heating system at home.

A resident surnamed Zhang in Guangzhou told the Global Times on Monday that it's possible that the city experience power shortage during summer, when demand for electricity surges. 

The Global Times found that in other cities of Guangdong, known as China's manufacturing base, electricity supply is sufficient. In Dongguan, home to the country's vast export-oriented firms, restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues are running in full swing now.

The blackout came as several southern provinces including Hunan, Jiangxi and Zhejiang, have reportedly restricted power supply to save electricity due to surging heating demand.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner said that high-speed growth of manufacturing, along with low temperatures, resulted in rapid increase in electricity demand. However, electricity supply nationwide maintains stable.

The State Grid Corporation of China said on Friday that it will take actions to address any power shortage, for example, improving power transmission capacity and maximizing the power purchase needs for key industrial regions.