The coldest winter since 2012 is coming in China, particularly the northeastern and northwestern parts of the country, meteorologists said on Monday.

"Affected by a growing La Nina, the country's average temperature this winter is forecast to be 0.5 degree (Celsius) lower than average," Zheng Fei, a researcher from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, told People's Daily China, adding that the northeastern and northwestern regions will be hit harder as temperatures are expected to be way lower.

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La Nina is a climate patter that is described as the cooling of surface ocean waters of the equatorial Pacific Ocean.

Last August, the central Pacific's temperature was recorded to be cooler than its average by 0.53 degree Celsius, the National Climate Center of China Meteorological Administration said.

"Based on records, it means the winter has larger possibilities to be colder," Ding Yihui, an academician from the Chinese Academy of Engineering, noted.

However, of note, this year's La Nina is not anticipated to be as strong as that of in 2008, but it will add more uncertainty to forecasts, Zheng noted. "The precipitation in winter is hard to forecast now," he added.

Furthermore, a colder than average air mass that blew from the Arctic on Monday is also expected to contribute to the big chills in the country.

"The air mass from Arctic has grown stronger in recent years, bringing a larger influence to the winter in China," Ding noted, with Zheng adding that temperature is expected to further drop between January and February because of the larger air mass influence.

Meanwhile, China will permit coal mines with short supply to increase their production to cope with the expected increase in demand for heating and power during winter and spring, according to Reuters. 

Tagswinter, china, coldest winter, La Nina, La Nina 2016, La Nina China, Winter 2016