Usually, natural disasters e.g. heavy downpours lead to financial damage and other negative consequences. However, this year the rainy season in China, on the contrary, helped to avoid a crisis. "As bad as the world’s energy crisis has been this year, it would have been much worse without a wetter-than-usual start to China’s rainy season," Bloomberg stated.
The heavy rains in China turned out to be a public safety crisis. "They’ve also led to reduced air-conditioning demand and surging hydropower generation. Both have lessened the need for fossil fuels, allowing the world’s biggest coal and gas importer to cut purchases and leave more supply for other energy-starved nations", Bloomberg pointed out.
Notably, hydropower is still the largest carbon-free energy resource in China. It accounts for about as much power as solar, wind, and nuclear combined. By the end of May, the volume of hydropower production jumped by 18% compared to last year. Rains filled reservoirs, and two massive projects along the tributaries of the Yangtze River boosted energy output.
On top of that, the torrential rains helped to keep temperatures cool in southern China, where the intense heat in May and June caused a shortage of coal last year. It forced local authorities to cut off electricity at factories.
