Clean-energy industry thrives in Haixi of NW China's Qinghai

By fully harnessing its natural endowments, the Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in northwest China's Qinghai Province has in recent years successfully blazed a trail on the way to developing clean energy.

Photo shows solar photovoltaic panels in the Qaidam Basin in northwest China's Qinghai Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Committee)

Located in the Qaidam Basin, the prefecture boasts abundant solar and wind energy resources. It has formed a holistic development pattern that is green and low-carbon, with photovoltaic (PV) and photo-thermal power generation projects as the mainstay, while having advanced other industries including equipment manufacturing, new energy materials and photovoltaics in parallel. So far, eight clean energy bases have been nearly fully established.

By the end of March this year, new-energy power generation projects in Haixi reached a total installed capacity of about 11.6 million kW, with PV power representing 5.95 million kW, wind power 5.49 million kW, and photo-thermal power 160,000 kW. These projects have to date generated a combined electricity output of 16.9 billion kWh, leading to reductions of more than 16.5 million tonnes of CO2 a year.

Photo shows wind turbines in the Qaidam Basin in northwest China's Qinghai Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Committee)

The Three Gorges New Energy Dachaidan Wind Power Co. Ltd., for example, built a wind farm at Liushaping inside the Gobi Desert. “There was hardly any wildlife here in the past, let alone human beings. As our clean-energy project develops, the wind turbine generators have become an eye-catching scene in the desert,” introduced Kong Weiwu, a staff member at the company. Kong, who has been working on location there for seven years, witnessed the number of wind turbine generators installed by his company grow from 33 to over 150.

A 500-MW project for the construction of a power source grid-load storage unit kicked off in September 2019 at a wind power industrial park in Delingha city. “Upon completion, the project will effectively contribute to energy conservation and CO2 emissions. It conforms to the country’s sustainable development principles and is an important example of the country’s energy strategy,” said Wang Wenli, deputy general manager of the company undertaking the project.

Photo shows solar photovoltaic panels in the Qaidam Basin in northwest China's Qinghai Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of CPC Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Committee)

China General Nuclear Power Corp began to construct a 2 million kW integrated solar-thermal storage project in Delingha in March. At present, it is considered the integrated solar-thermal storage project with the highest energy storage amount in the country.

“The project is expected to be completed and brought into operation by the end of 2024, with an annual on-grid power generation of 3.65 billion kWh. The project is part of Qinghai’s efforts to build itself into a clean energy powerhouse, and will help the country realize the goal of carbon peaking and neutrality,” said Jian Zhao, an executive at the company. 

Aerial photo shows a photovoltaic industrial park in Haixi in northwest China's Qinghai Province. (Photo courtesy of the publicity department of Haixi Mongolian and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture)