China Power Stocks Surge as Heatwave and AI Demand Lift Grid Load

China's A-share power sector rallied sharply on July 20, with the Tonghuashun power index up 4.8% at the close and about 17 stocks, including Huaneng Inner Mongolia (600863.SH), Huayin Electric Power (600744.SH), Jinkai New Energy (600821.SH) and Jiantou Energy (000600.SZ), hitting their daily limit-up, according to Jiemian News. The move came as electricity demand rose during the summer peak and as computing demand expanded. China's National Development and Reform Commission said on July 10 that nationwide power load reached 1.518 billion kilowatts, a record high for the year, and then rose again to 1.551 billion kilowatts on July 14, when 16 provincial grids set 59 new peaks. At a press briefing on April 27, the National Energy Administration forecast that China's maximum power load during the 2026 summer peak would reach 1.575 billion to 1.6 billion kilowatts, up 70 million to 90 million kilowatts from last year's peak, and could exceed 1.6 billion kilowatts in extreme heat. The National Energy Administration said on July 15 that China's total electricity consumption in the first half rose 5.3% year on year to 5.1 trillion kilowatt-hours. Consumption by the first, second and third industries was 71.1 billion, 3.3057 trillion and 991.6 billion kilowatt-hours, respectively, while high-tech and equipment manufacturing used 600.8 billion kilowatt-hours, up 9.8%. Electricity use by charging and battery-swap services and internet data services rose 56.9% and 44% to 81 billion and 49.4 billion kilowatt-hours. Zhang Lin, head of the development planning department at the China Electricity Council, said at a briefing that computing-related electricity use in China is expected to rise by more than 100 billion kilowatt-hours a year during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, and may reach 800 billion kilowatt-hours by 2030, or about 6% of total electricity consumption. The China Electricity Council's China Power Industry Annual Development Report 2026 said China's power supply and demand will be broadly balanced in 2026, though some areas will face tighter balances in the summer peak.