The multibillion-yuan government capital injection for the power grid in Sichuan province is not enough to cover huge losses caused by a string of natural disasters in the first half of 2008, said Zhu Changlin, who manages the State Grid's operation in Sichuan.

Recovery of the quake-hit Sichuan grid may require as much as 30 billion yuan (US$4.39 billion). However, the compensation it received from the 4-trillion-yuan stimulus plan as well as the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SA-SAC), which oversees some 140 major State-owned enterprises, was 1.355 billion yuan and 2.846 billion yuan, respectively.

"The compensation is far from enough to cover that loss," Zhu said on the sidelines of the annual sessions of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

According to the China Electricity Council, the 2008 snowstorm and earthquake resulted in a total loss of 22.5 billion yuan for the State Grid. The Sichuan Grid alone suffered losses of 600 million yuan and 10 billion yuan from the snowstorm and earthquake respectively, Zhu said.

(China Daily March 4, 2009)