Energy revolution pays dividends in province

A worker installs cables on top of a pylon as part of a grid upgrading project in the city of Jinzhong. [Photo by Wang Hao for China Daily]

Shanxi's energy revolution campaign is expected to continue to make major progress as a number of significant construction projects for new energy development are underway across the province.

The campaign, which reinforces Shanxi's standing as a flagship province in China's energy revolution strategy, is aimed at promoting industry transformation toward the direction of cleaner and more efficient operations, ensuring national energy supply and contributing solutions to global climate change.

One recent move saw local new energy giant Jinko Solar hold a groundbreaking ceremony on Sept 26 to kick-start construction of the company's mega-sized comprehensive new energy project that will be capable of producing photovoltaic – or solar power – components with an annual capacity of 56 gigawatts. Located in the Shanxi Transformation and Comprehensive Reform Demonstration Zone, the project is scheduled to take two years to complete.

Another significant project under construction is a pumped storage hydropower facility in the county of Hunyuan, which is being built by China Railway No 18 Bureau Group. On Sept 28, construction of the tunnel leading to the upstream reservoir was completed, signifying a major breakthrough for the control part of the project.

Pumped storage is a common practice around the world. It involves pumping water to an upstream reservoir during off-peak times when there is redundant electricity. When more power is needed, the stored capacity is released to the lower reservoir the same way a conventional hydro station generates electricity. Such projects have strong flexibility and an enhanced capacity for stabilizing grid operations.

The Jinko and Hunyuan projects are just two of 66 key projects relating to the energy revolution campaign planned by Shanxi province this year, with a combined investment of 50.65 billion yuan ($6.92 billion) planned for this year's construction. In addition, Shanxi has another 397 energy revolution-related projects planned for the years to come, with a combined investment totaling 554.5 billion yuan.

As a pioneer in China's energy revolution, Shanxi shoulders its role in ensuring the national power supply and safeguarding national energy security, with a number of projects launched for that mission. In May, a 1,000-kilovolt substation project became operational in Yushe county to help the existing 500-kV grid linking neighboring regions lift its capacity to the ultrahigh voltage range. Ultrahigh voltage grids feature less electricity loss and greater efficiency.

At present, Shanxi has launched seven projects to upgrade the existing interprovincial electricity transmission lines into ultrahigh voltage grids. In addition to the upgrades, a 1,000-kV ultrahigh voltage transmission line is being built to connect the Shanxi city of Datong, the Hebei county of Huailai and Tianjin municipality.

"These projects for expanding Shanxi's electricity transmission capacity can make better use of the province's rich resources in coal, gas, wind and solar power and meet the increasing demand from regions in the rest of the country," said Zhang Xiang, deputy chief of the Shanxi Commission of Development and Reform.

Zhang Yi contributed to this story.