30-MW solar project powers Tibetan city
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18 Apr 2012
- Published on Wednesday, 18 April 2012 17:51
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A newly-operational 30-megawatt solar photovoltaic generation plant will reduce the number of winter power shortages in the sunshine-rich city of Xigaze in Tibet, China.
Located 3 kilometers northwest of Xigaze city proper, the autonomous region's second-largest city, the plant is the first phase of a large-scale solar power project being constructed by Linuo Power Group.
Two other solar photovoltaic generation projects are still under construction in the same industrial park – a 60-megawatt project sponsored by LDK Solar, and a 10-megawatt PV generation station by Chaorisolar.
"The combined capacity of the city's PV industry has therefore reached 100-megawatts, the largest in China," said Wang Xijing, secretary of Xigaze's committee of the Communist Party of China.
Tibet averages 3,000 hours of solar radiation annually, or about 6,000 to 8,000 megajoules per square meter, making it an ideal location for solar power production.
Xigaze, having at least 4.67 square km of usable wasteland, is an ideal location for building solar battery arrays in the region, said Mr. Wang.
He added that the city plans to expand cooperation with leading Chinese energy firms to seek further development in the photovoltaic and thermal power generation sectors.
Over the past 60 years, Tibet has stepped up its exploits of clean energy resources. Tibet officials estimate that at least 162,800 metric tons of coal equivalent were saved in 2010 through solar power use. – EcoSeed Staff
