Renewable energy taking off in Xinjiang

BEIJING, Sept. 20 (Xinhua) -- Twenty-six-old herdsman Kerimu Saimaiti, from the Bulunkou Township in Xinjiang, only 30km from the Tajikistan border, is enjoying a new luxury.

"When I go out herding I always carry a radio with me," he said.

The entertainment is the product of a renewable energy drive in the remote parts of the province to popularize the use of solar and wind power. It cost Saimaiti 1,500 yuan (188 U.S. dollars) to install solar panels on his roof, which now generate enough electricity for lights and the radio for his six-person household.

Over 5,000 solar systems have been installed in Saimaiti's prefecture, bringing electrical power to 23,184 people. In addition, another 40 solar power stations were set up in seven other counties in the province with a total capacity of 494.856 kw, providing electricity for 15,195 people.

For nomads living in remote areas where the power grid cannot reach, the local government installed the solar system for them. With a capacity of 25w each, the gadget can power a small water heater, a radio, a television and several bulbs.

A wind-diesel hybrid village power project funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Global Environment Facility (GEF) has also changed the lifestyle of over 6,000 people in other villages of Bulunkou Township.

Four years ago, 22-year-old Roukeyamu was doing her homework by candlelight. "Now I own a television with two channels that broadcasts international news and Korean soap operas translated into her own dialect," she said.

At the end of December 2002, eight wind turbines were installed with a capacity of 92 kw, supplying power to 6,172 people with an annual income of 1,400 yuan (175 U.S. dollars) per capita.

However, some 400,000 people from 90,000 households, two percent of the total population of Xinjiang, still have no access to electricity.

"The geographical conditions of Xinjiang makes it difficult for the power network to reach remote areas, and the cost is very high," said Shen Yiyang, Energy & Environment Program Manager of the UNDP. "For every meter of the network, the cost could as much as 8,000 U.S. dollars. For industrial electricity, the cost could be even higher."

The wind power reserves of Xinjiang account for 37 percent of the country's total, only after Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, while its solar energy reserves are second only to Tibet.

Four wind farms with a capacity of over 10,000 kw each have been set up in Xinjiang with a total capacity of 181,400 kw, the biggest in China. Among them, Dabancheng Wind Farm, established in 1989, has become the largest in Asia with a total capacity of 179,000 kw. The total output last year in Xinjiang reached 230,000 kwh, 90 percent of which came from Dabancheng Wind Farm.

It is expected that in 2020, the capacity of Dabancheng Wind Farm will reach one million kw.

"The figure means not only more energy for local nomads, but also the improvement of their living conditions and awareness of environmental issues," said Shen Yiyang.

According to the Renewable Energy Medium and Long-Term Development Program released by China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), renewable energies are expected to account for 10 percent of the country's total energy production by 2010, and 16 percent by 2020. Hydropower capacity will reach 300 million kw, wind power 30 million kw, biomass energy 30 million kw, and solar energy 1.8 million kw.

"It is an ambitious target and a lot needs to be done to achieve it," said Khalid Malik, UN resident coordinator and UNDP resident representative in China.

"Conserving energy is as important as producing new energy. Besides pooling more investment, the Chinese government should also take the efficiency and conservation of energy into consideration, and the impact on the environment. In this regard, any country can do it. Of course China can, too," said Malik.