China has greatly enhanced electricity accessibility by reducing costs and streamlining services, according to a senior Chinese official.
The country has cut the electricity connection time by more than 40 percent, said Song Hongkun, deputy head of the National Energy Administration, at a press briefing on Thursday.
"As residents and small businesses no longer need to pay for electricity connections, we have entered an era where people can access power service completely free of charge. Residents and small enterprises with a low-voltage power capacity below 160 kilowatts can quickly connect to the power grid without spending a penny. Over the past five years, we managed to save approximately 60 billion yuan (about 8.33 U.S. dollars) in total for users in this regard. This is another major milestone in the history of China's power development," said Song.
China has built the world's largest internet-based electricity service system, enabling users to apply for power connections, make payments, and report faults through online service platforms and hotlines, Song said.
He also said that China has kept improving its power supply capability.
Power providers have increased grid investment, advancing automation and self-healing networks, ensuring uninterrupted operations, and swiftly responding to user requests via the service hotline, said Song.
"The power supply reliability of the urban and rural power grids has been improving year by year. Urban and rural outage time in 2024 decreased by 28 percent and 44 percent, respectively, compared with those in 2020. Major cities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta regions experienced an average outage time of less than one hour last year, with outage in some core districts lasting for just minutes," said Song.
China greatly enhances electricity accessibility: official
The Iranian government is focusing on public concerns and maintaining stable supplies of essential goods amid recent protests, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a televised interview on Sunday.
In the city of Karaj, northwest of the capital Tehran, daily life has largely continued as normal. A video filmed by a local resident on Sunday shows food stores open and grocery shelves fully stocked.
"This is the block near my home, and there are some food stores here. Daily life continues here. Last night we did not see many protests in Karaj. Right now the city is very safe. This is a grocery store close to my home. All the food is available; nothing is in shortage. Here are noodles and different types of beans. Here are dairy products, cheese, and yogurt. I also checked other grocery stores and didn't see any shortages. Everything is available," said local resident Ali Reza.
Iranian officials have described recent disturbances as acts orchestrated by the "enemy," including some carried out by well-trained and armed "terrorists." The incidents have caused casualties among security personnel and civilians, as well as property damage.
The Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani has directed authorities to severely punish the "terrorists."
Meanwhile, Iran's police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan said on Sunday that the police had raised alert levels and arrested several leaders of the troublemakers during the operations on Saturday.
President Pezeshkian noted in the interview that the normal demands of the Iranian people are reasonable and justified, but they must realize that triggering riots and carrying out terrorist acts are the enemy's attempts to undermine the country. He urged the public to remain vigilant.
Also on Sunday, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that Tehran would regard U.S. and Israeli bases and facilities in the Middle East as "legitimate targets" if Washington takes military action against Iran. His remarks followed media reports saying U.S. President Donald Trump is "seriously considering authorizing a strike" against Iran.
Iranian state media reported that at least 109 members of Iran's security forces have been killed in clashes since the protests began 14 days ago. Meanwhile, human rights groups based outside the country said the number of protesters killed has exceeded 200, though the figure could not be independently verified.
The protests initially erupted over a sharp depreciation of the rial and sweeping subsidy reforms. Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign-linked agents and sanctions imposed by the United States.
Iranian president says government focusing on ensuring supplies amid protests
