China's energy crisis is gaining momentum: Suppliers of Apple and other companies have already warned of the threat of delays

The situation could last until the end of this year or even longer

Power outages in China have only intensified, prompting various companies to move production out of the country to other regions, with suppliers to Apple, Amazon and other companies struggling to keep production at the right level ahead of the busy holiday season.

Since June of this year, there have been occasional notices of power outages, but since mid-September it has become commonplace. Now every week we get a notice telling us which days of the next week they will cut the power.

The 500 employees of this company make Bluetooth receivers, headphones and other accessories for international brands like Harman Kardon and Edifier. Because the power supply is reduced to two days a week, the company has to rely on its own power generators. Another supplier, which serves Amazon, Lenovo and other companies, gets power only three days a week. Representatives of Apple and other companies confirm that if the situation persists, component deliveries are bound to be delayed.

Suppliers in cities in the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Guangdong, where tens of thousands of technology companies are based, say they are facing capacity constraints this month as local governments cut energy consumption. They cite rising commodity prices, rising electricity demand amid pandemic recovery and President Xi Jinping's commitments to cut carbon emissions as the reasons.

The situation seemed difficult after a week-long power outage in late September. Now there are growing fears that the disruption will prove to be long-lasting. Sources note that the situation could last until the end of this year or even longer