00:00Electricity powers the modern economy.
00:11From the phones in our hands, to the cars we charge,
00:15and the grids lighting up megacities skylines.
00:19And yet one of the biggest consumers is still heavy industry.
00:23And nowhere is that demand more visible than on the factory floor.
00:27We're here at the heavy plate mill at the special steel plant.
00:31It turns out about 1.65 million tons a year and runs almost around the clock.
00:36We're here to find out exactly how much power is being used and where that power is now going.
00:42Located in Jiangyin, eastern China's Jiangsu province,
00:46Xingcheng Special Steelworks is one of the world's largest single-site producers of special steel,
00:52with the most complete product range in its sector.
00:57In 2025, the company's total electricity consumption reached 3.5 billion kilowatt hours,
01:06up about 10% year on year.
01:08We're increasing the use of green power through direct purchases,
01:12rooftop solar, and energy storage systems.
01:15A 10% rise in power use is no small feat amid current global conditions.
01:21Even more noteworthy, green electricity now counts for over 10% of total consumption,
01:27and the share is steadily growing.
01:31Green and low-carbon development is a core task for the special steel industry.
01:37Our steel for high-end wind power equipment now holds over 80% of the domestic market.
01:42In 2025, we developed 15 new key materials, including steel for aerospace fasteners.
01:49That marks an expansion from traditional products into aviation, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing.
01:56The plant also generates its own electricity,
01:59using waste heat from production and recycled gases from blast furnaces and converters.
02:04The rest comes from the public grid.
02:07To see how the grid is handling demand, we visited a local substation in Jiangyin.
02:13Grid operators say more than 80% of the city's electricity consumption last year came from the secondary sector,
02:20highlighting the resilience of Jiangyin's industrial economy.
02:23The power use structure is being upgraded.
02:28Electricity demand from traditional high-energy consumption industries is declining,
02:34while usage from high-tech industries and modern services continues to rise.
02:40Liu asks that the pattern of one falling, one rising,
02:43mirrors broader industrial restructuring across Jiangsu and the rest of China.
02:47Last year, China's electricity consumption surpassed 10 trillion kilowatt-hours for the first time,
02:54more than double the United States,
02:56and higher than the combined total of the European Union, Russia, India, and Japan.
03:02A milestone powered by more renewables and the electrification of industry,
03:06it reflects a rebalancing in how growth is generated.
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