The news came after China warned more than 2,000 companies in high-polluting and energy-intensive industries to shut down outdated equipment or risk having bank loans frozen, approvals for new projects dry up, and their power turned off.

The order from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology was the latest salvo by Beijing as it tries to slash its world-leading greenhouse gas emissions and restructure the economy.

The 506 factories in eight cities targeted by officials in Anhui province are mostly in industries that consume high amounts of energy such as the coal, chemical and metallurgical sectors, the China Daily newspaper reported.

"Some of their high energy consumption is due to the factories' antiquated production facilities," Zhao De, an energy official with the province's Department of Economic and Information Technology, was quoted as saying.

He told the newspaper it was the first time the province had cut the power to such a large number of factories, although previously officials had put limits on power consumption during peak summer months.

Sun Yangzhi, an official at Zhongcheng Cement Factory which employs 700 people in the city of Huaibei, told the newspaper his plant received a notice that power to the plant would be cut for a month two days before the blackout.

"We are quite worried because several tons of coating material will be wasted if we do not put them into production as soon as possible," Sun was quoted as saying.

"We are also anxious because we will not be able to complete several orders."

The suspensions are intended to help the province meet its energy consumption targets by year's end, the report said.

The factory blackouts will also reduce electricity demand as the province copes with two weeks of temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit) which have sent consumption soaring, the report said.

Neighbouring provinces have also introduced measures to cope with surging power demand.

Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province, has restricted consumption to 1,000 companies since Thursday to ensure that residents have enough power and has also asked energy-intensive companies to halt production, the report said.

In Zhejiang, 69 companies in Jinhua city had their electricity rationed between July and September, while in Shaoxing city, which consumes a quarter of the province's power, 200 firms face limits until year's end, it said.

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