HOHHOT, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- Construction has begun on a wind-solar-battery hybrid power project in the city of Tongliao, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, to supplement the use of thermal power.

With an investment of 13.75 billion yuan (about 2.08 billion U.S. dollars), the hybrid power system is designed to have 1.7 million kilowatts of installed wind power capacity, 300,000 kilowatts of installed solar power capacity and a power bank with a storage capacity of 320,000 kilowatts.

According to the Tongliao municipal government, the hybrid power system can switch to renewable energy when wind and sunlight are strong so as to reduce the dependence on thermal power plants.

The first-phase construction of a wind power plant with 900,000 kilowatts of installed capacity is expected to be completed in 2021. After commissioning, it will generate 3 billion kWh of electricity annually.

Located in eastern Inner Mongolia, Tongliao is rich in mineral resources and relies on thermal power. In the first three quarters of this year, the city's total electricity consumption was 37.65 billion kWh, up 3.9 percent over last year.

The hybrid power project aims to propel the local consumption of clean energy and coordinate integrated development of renewable energy projects and existing thermal power generators.