从2010年12月以来到现在，先是产煤大省山西，陕西，然后是全国其他的省份，先后发生了电煤供应紧缺的现象。晋陕两省已有多个电厂缺煤停机，如果煤荒不及时解决，将可能导致大面积停电。陕西电煤库存低于7天应急警戒线的统调电厂已超过半数，电网安全、有序供电和供热受到威胁，电网外送电也受到影响。而山西电网也不堪 “重负”。 知情人士称，近日山西长治已被迫停止发电。不仅如此，2010年10月份后山西就持续出现拉闸限电情况。这些现象的罪魁祸首都是电煤紧缺。此外，河南、湖北等地也出现了火电厂电煤告急的状况。南方燃料公司的一位负责人说，河南近来已有多个火电企业缺煤停机。

 

这种煤荒的真相是什么呢？是煤炭供小于求而导致煤炭紧缺吗？实际情况并非如此，2010年全年全国原煤产量大约33亿吨，而2010年煤炭表观消费量为32亿吨，所以整体上看2010年的煤炭供应略大于求。此外，电煤价格也有所下降，截至2010年12月29日，5500卡的主流动力煤价格为每吨785-795元，相比月初的800-810元/吨的价格下降了15-25元。

那么，在供应充足、价格下滑的情况下，火电厂为何仍旧遭遇煤荒？而且，缺煤最严重的地方都为产煤大省：山西、陕西、河南？是什么导致这种奇怪的现象呢？

 

一位业内人士说出了根本的原因：电煤供应紧缺的原因在于煤、电体制，具体地说就是：没有了小煤窑的煤炭供应，失去了合同煤，同时市场煤又买不起，产煤大省的这些小火电厂最终选择了少存煤或不存煤，从而导致了煤炭紧缺。自2008年煤炭业整改以来，小煤窑不断被关闭，部分电力企业由于未签重点合同煤协议，唯一的选择就是更加昂贵的市场煤，造成这些企业宁愿昂煤炭短缺，也不去购买市场煤，从而造成了煤荒现象，其根本原因就是体制所导致的低价煤炭资源的短缺，而后果是产煤大省部分电厂的严重亏损。

 

From December 2010 to now, firstly the main Coal-producing province Shanxi and Shan’xi, than other provinces in China, all encountered the Coal supply shortage. There are many power plants shut down because of this sort of shortage in these two provinces, and if the problem is not solved immediately, it would cause large-area power-cuts. There have been more than half of the power plants in Shan’xi with the coal storage bellow the warning line of seven days, which constitute the huge threat to the safety of power plant net, the electricity supply and the heating supply. Meanwhile, the power plant net was also under great pressure. According to some insider who is familiar with the situation, Changzhi City was forced in these days to make power-cuts. In addition, other provinces including Henan and Hubei also encountered similar problems. One head in Southern Fuel Company said that: recently there have been several Fired power companies being force to shut down because of the Coal supply shortage.

 

What’s the truth of this Coal supply shortage?  Is it because the supply is less than demand? But the truth is another scenario. In 2010, the coal supply nationwide is about 3.3 billion tons, but the demand is just 3.2 billion tons, which is slightly less than the supply. In addition, the price of coal also decreased. To the day of December 29,2010, the price of mainstream 5500 calories thermal coal is  785-795 Yuan per ton, 15-25 Yuan less than that, which is 800-810 Yuan per ton, in the beginning of the month. 

 

And so what? Why these areas still encountered coal shortage in this kind of situation with the enough supply and pricing declining. And what ‘s more, the provinces encountering the most serious shortage are the those with the greatest coal production. What’s the reason of this oddly phenomenon?

 

An insider provided the true reason: the system of coal and electricity. Specifically, without the cheap coal supply from small coal pit, without the contract coal, the small fired power plant ‘s sole choice is to store less coal or even store no coal because the price of market coal is so expensive. Than the coal shortage loomed large in the market. Since the coal system reform in 2008, small coal pits have been shut down, some power plant companies have not bought contract coal, and they have to buy the expensive market coal. For this reason, these companies would like to bear the pressure of coal shortage rather than buy the market coal, which caused the phenomenon of coal shortage.  After all, the deep reason is that current system leaded to the coal shortage, and then caused the serious loss in many power plant companies in several big coal production provinces. 

 

The backward of system will necessarily lead to bad influences on the economy development, which was expressed lively in this event. According the report of CEN on December 2005, under the background that China joined the WTO, more and more foreign capitals have entered the coal production provinces such as Shanxi and Shan’xi and if the problem was not solved, the energy industry in China would encounter greater loss with the dual restriction caused by new incomer and backward system.