BEIJING, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- Braving freezing winds to inspect power grid facilities has become a daily task for electrician Zhao Bing and his colleagues in recent weeks.

As a strong cold wave sweeps across most parts of China, ensuring a reliable power supply to guarantee warmth and normalcy for residents is a priority, according to Zhao, who works for a State Grid Corporation of China subsidiary in Gaomi City, east China's Shandong Province.

"Since the electricity peak this winter, we have used infrared temperature-detecting drones to inspect about 800 power distribution poles, helping us find and fix problems fast," Zhao said.

China's winter temperature trajectory has seen a significant downturn since the beginning of December, with widespread, heavy snowfall in many parts of the country.

From Tuesday to Friday, the lowest daily temperatures in some regions, including parts of Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Guangxi and Guangdong, will be more than 5 degrees Celsius lower than the historic average for the period, according to the National Meteorological Center.

Zhou Bing from the China Meteorological Administration has predicted that most areas of the country will experience cold air in January and February, with freezing conditions and strong snowfall in northern regions, and low temperatures and freezing rain in the south.

In response to the unusual cold weather, the Chinese government has moved swiftly to increase the supply of power, heating and daily necessities, and to ensure normalcy for the people.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planner, has worked in coordination with other agencies to ensure the supply of power and natural gas to effectively meet the surging demand for energy during the heating season, NDRC spokesperson Li Chao told a press conference on Tuesday.

China's power and natural gas usage hit a record on Sunday, with the electricity load peaking at 1.24 billion kilowatts and gas consumption exceeding 1.42 billion cubic meters on the day.

In Inner Mongolia, one of the regions hit hardest by the cold wave, petrochemical giant Sinopec's petrol stations are operating around the clock.

"It's our priority to meet the people's refueling demand. We strive to ensure a sufficient inventory and the smooth distribution of oil products in extreme weather," said Wang Aiguo, deputy general manager of Sinopec's Inner Mongolia branch.

When Yuncheng City in north China's Shanxi Province was hit by ice and freezing temperatures in recent days, the Ministry of Emergency Management immediately allocated disaster relief to local authorities, minimizing the impact on affected residents. Materials ranging from coats to emergency lights were provided to locals in a timely manner.

"We will keep a close eye on the development of the disaster and the needs of the people, and prepare to dispatch disaster relief materials at any time," ministry official Chen Sheng said.

Facing the persistent cold wave, China has also taken action to strengthen safety checks on roads and railways, and to eliminate snow-induced workplace risks. Efforts have been made to increase the coal supply for power plants, release more government reserves of goods such as meat and vegetables, crack down on price gouging in markets, and accelerate farm produce harvests. In recent days, China's three major telecom operators have sent out nearly 1 billion alert messages to remind their users of the cold weather.

As new cold waves approach, the government has pledged more efforts to tackle the challenges they pose. "We will go all-out to ensure people stay safe and warm this winter," NDRC spokesperson Li said. Enditem

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