Energy supply-demand imbalances 'an urgent problem'

Even taking sales to other provinces into account, Sichuan will still have an excess of up to 21.8 billion kilowatt-hours this year.

In 2014, the province wasted 18.7 billion kWh of electricity generation, she said.

Hydropower is clean energy and its waste will cause huge economic losses and environmental costs, Chu said.

Wang Dongming, Sichuan's Party chief, said that the power grid in Sichuan should improve links to other provinces and prices should be cut to encourage more power use.

Liu Zhenya, president of State Grid, said in an earlier interview that extra-high-voltage transmission lines will help solve China's energy delivery imbalances.

State Grid plans to invest 420.2 billion yuan ($67.29 billion) in 2015, up 24 percent from last year, and such transmission lines will be the core of the investment, according to the company.

Peng Yining contributed to this story.

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China 2014 power consumption rises 3.8% by Xinhua

A woman refules vehicle in a petrol station in Nantong, Jiangsu province, Jan 26, 2015. [Photo by Xu Congjun/Asianewsphoto]

China's electricity consumption, a key indicator of economic activity, rose 3.8 percent year on year in 2014, the National Energy Administration said on Jan 16.

The growth marked a sharp slowdown from the 7.5 percent gain seen in the previous year as the country's economic strength remained subdued.