Villagers in parts of northwest China's Qinghai Province no longer have to rely on
candlelight at night, thanks to a Sino-German solar energy
cooperation program.
Photovoltaic and photovoltaic-diesel engine hybrid stations have
been constructed at 11 villages in the Mongolian-Tibetan-Kazak
Prefecture of Haixi and the Tibetan Prefecture of Haibei,
benefiting 520 rural households, said Liu Hong, general manager of
Qinghai Illumination Engineering Co. Ltd., which oversees the
cooperation program.
The Sino-German cooperation program, launched in July 2002, is
striving to improve energy resources through utilizing renewable
sources in remote areas of Qinghai.
The entire program has a budget of 92.4 million yuan (US$11.39
million), including US$7.89 million from the German government and
28 million yuan from the Qinghai provincial government.
A German company will be responsible for training technical
workers to manage the photovoltaic or photovoltaic-diesel engine
hybrid stations, according to the general manager.
Apart from Haixi and Haibei prefectures, the Sino-German
cooperation program is also executed in the three Tibetan
autonomous prefectures of Hainan, Huangnan and Yushu, all in
Qinghai Province, as well as in Haidong Prefecture south to Xining,
the provincial capital.
More new photovoltaic stations will be constructed at more than
60 villages in the above mentioned regions during the second phase
of the cooperation program .
It is estimated 5,400 rural households will be brought within
reach of electrical supply when the second phase is finished by
July next year.
Situated deep in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Qinghai Province abounds in
solar resources, with annual average sunlight standing between
2,300 hours and 3,600 hours.
A survey conducted in 2004 showed there was no power supply in
some 1,000 villages across Qinghai.
(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2006)