'Solar Great Wall' could power Beijing by 2030

In an interview with China Daily, Li Kai, an official with the energy administration of Dalad Banner, stressed the huge economic and ecological benefits the project is expected to generate.

Some 133 km of the "Solar Great Wall" will be built in the banner, and the average width of the section is designed to be 25 km, the official said. Thanks to the project, Dalad's total renewable energy capacity will reach 19 million kW by the end of this decade.

This achievement will result in an annual green power output of 38 billion kWh, leading to savings equivalent to nearly 12.6 million metric tons of standard coal and a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 31.3 million tons, Li said.

By 2030, he said Dalad will be able to transmit 48 billion kWh of green electricity annually to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region via an ultra-high-voltage electricity transmission line that is under construction.

While solar panels can directly contribute to desertification control by serving as windbreaks and sand fixers, as well as by providing shade to reduce the evaporation of soil moisture, 2,400 hectares of commercial crops will also be planted beneath the panels to help treat the desert, Li added.

The initiative of utilizing the space under the panels underscores the local government's commitment to achieving a symbiotic relationship between ecological preservation and economic advancement, he stressed.