Beijing, China - June 5, 2025 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Press conference in progress
2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Song Hongkun, deputy head, National Energy Administration (partially overlaid with shot 3):
"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."
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3. Reporters at press briefing
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4. Various of reporters at press briefing
5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Song Hongkun, deputy head, National Energy Administration (starting with shot 4):
"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."

Sichuan Province, southwest China - May 27, 2025 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
6. Various of pylons

FILE: China - Exact Date and Location Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
7. Various of facilities at substation

FILE: Sichuan Province, southwest China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
8. Various of robot inspecting power equipment, worker monitoring remotely

FILE: Jiangsu Province, east China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
9. Aerial shot of pylon towers
10. Aerial shot of electricity substation
11. Aerial shot of cityscape

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.