Green energy bolsters Inner Mongolia's development

Driven by green energy development, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region has experienced robust economic development and has seen increasingly larger vegetation coverage in the past decade, said Sun Shaocheng, the region's Party chief.

The region has made "historic achievements" since 2012, he said at a news conference in Hohhot, the regional capital, on Monday

With its GDP doubled and per capita GDP rising from 42,000 ($6,150) yuan to 85,000 during the past 10 years, the region has maintained sound momentum in terms of economic growth, ethnic unity, social stability and border security, Sun said.

In 2012, grassland coverage in the region stood at 40.3 percent, and the forest coverage rate was 20.8 percent, he said. Currently, the respective rates have increased to 45 percent and 23 percent.

Following consistent decreases in its desert areas, the region only suffers sand storm for 0.6 days on average, down from 4.9 days a decade ago, the Party chief added.

"In the past decade, we have also energetically developed a modern energy economy," Sun said.

The total power generation capacity in the region has reached 156 million kilowatts, with over one-third for new energy, he said, adding that Inner Mongolia now No 1 in the nation in new energy generation.