Company lights up locals' lives

Three Gorges Corp provides PV panels to Qinghai farmers

China Three Gorges Corporation, builder and operator of the world's largest hydroelectric power project - the Three Gorges Dam, has provided more than 7,000 households with a total of 2,431 kilowatts of power from its photovoltaic energy system in Haixi Mongolian autonomous prefecture in Qinghai province for the past three years - a region that has electricity shortages for decades.

Taking advantage of the sunshine-rich northwestern areas, the corporation has helped more than 20,000 local households equip their homes with photovoltaic panels to supply farmers and herdsmen with power.

Xiang Jie, a resident of the region - a place out of reach of the Qinghai Power Grid, used to take a 50-minute motorcycle ride into the downtown area every week to charge his cellphones and cameras.

He said: "We used to take advantage of cattle and sheep manure, as well as diesel oil lamps for heating and lighting. We once used small solar panels, but they only provided two hours of lighting."

Thanks to the photovoltaic power generation system, residents can now have electric light in the evenings and even enjoy watching television.

The photovoltaic power generation system transforms light energy into electricity and the energy can be stored for night usage, which is considered the best electricity solution for powering the region.

The project enables households to use solar electricity generated for their own purposes, which will eventually connect the village with the outside world, said the corporation.

The region enjoys long sunshine duration, with annual sunshine duration exceeding 3,200 hours.

These projects have not only increased revenues for farmers and herdsman, but have also solved agricultural problems, animal husbandry, helping the community to promote urbanization.

Xiang said his family had purchased a television and washing machine since the power generation system was set up, with a small refrigerator earmarked as a future purchase.

To boost the local economy and increase strategic reserves of clean energy, the government has encouraged using solar power in the region, including photovoltaic generation, and has also called on companies to explore abundant geothermal sources.

The Chinese government has vowed to eradicate poverty by 2020. This requires targeting the country's 70 million people living below the poverty line. The government says that use of PV technology in poverty alleviation is vital.

It has seen significant results in many regions like Qinghai, Shandong and Anhui provinces.

China's National Energy Administration released a plan in 2015 to use photovoltaics to increase the income of two million Chinese households in 471 counties in 16 provinces.

zhengxin@chinadaily.com.cn