Report highlights environmental protection efforts during construction of Turkey's Hunutlu Power Plant

A cloud opening day event is held by SPIC in Beijing on Dec. 23 (People's Daily Online/Wu Chaolan)

A social impact report related to the Hunutlu Power Plant in Turkey was released in a cloud open day event by State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC), one of China's top five power producers, on December 23.

Held under the theme of "Embracing the clean, reliable and harmonious energy development", the event displayed the progress of the construction of the Hunutlu Power Plant and SPIC's efforts in environmental protection during the design and construction of the plant. 

Representatives released 2020 Social Impact Report of Hunutlu Power Plant in the cloud open day event in Beijing, China on Dec. 23, 2020 (Photo provided to People's Daily Online)

Located in Adana, a province in southern Turkey, the Hunutlu Power Plant will have a total installed capacity of 1.32 million kilowatts once it is completed, which will become a major power source of Adana province, and boost economic and social development throughout the country. Equipped with advanced environmental protection and ultra-supercritical power generation techniques, the plant will greatly reduce local coal consumption and pollutant emissions.

As a key project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Turkey's development vision of becoming the "Middle Corridor", the plant is expected to deliver about nine billion Kilowatt-hours (KWH) of electricity to Turkey's national grid annually, according to SPIC. The plant, which will be the first non-chimney power plant in Turkey, is anticipated to go into operation in 2022.

"Bearing in mind the idea of a community with a shared future for mankind, SPIC values mutual benefits and win-win results, hoping to improve the livelihood of local people," said Zu Bing, a board member of SPIC. The plant contributes to the huge economic and social development in Turkey.

"The Hunutlu Power Plant Project is a model for foreign direct investment and transnational investment, as it improved the local facilities and boosted the job market in Turkey," said Liu Yuhua, China's minister-counsellor to Turkey via video link.

Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic ties between China and Turkey. "The two countries' relations not only depend on diplomacy but also on cultural and social exchanges as well as tourism and business," said Ugur Kilicarslan, Commercial counselor of the Turkish Embassy in China.