The Gobi Desert, located in the north and northwest of China, does not contain any elements other than rocks, stones and sand, and does not create a very promising environment for agriculturalists. China has decided to bring this desert, which has an area of 2 million square kilometers, into the economy.
Gobi Desert, which will be no longer an idle area, will become the center of renewable energy. He Lifeng, Chairman of the National Development Commission, announced that the largest solar and wind power plants in history will be built in this vast desert. Therefore, facilities with a total capacity of 450 Gigawatts (GW) will be formed here in the coming years.
Considering that the current wind parks in Austria have a capacity of 3,1 GW and the photovoltaic plants with a capacity of up to 2 GW, the size of the project becomes clearer. In addition, considering that the wind parks of all European Union countries have 220 GW solar panels and 165 GW installed energy production capacity is another data showing the size of the Gobi Desert project.
The initiative points to gigantic dimensions in Chinese conditions as well; because as of the end of 2021, the wind energy produced in the country is 328 GW, and the solar energy is 306 GW. The project in question will help China, which has committed to pass the peak of carbon dioxide emissions in 2030 and reach the carbon neutral stage by 2060, in achieving this process by exceeding its 2030 target of 1.200 GW.
China has already started the project by installing a solar farm with a capacity of about 100 GW in the Gobi Desert. Even this generation capacity is sufficient to meet the electricity needs of, for example, all of Mexico. In addition, China now knows how to keep costs low, as it has established such energy facilities in the past years.
According to the government's plan, part of the production here will be transferred to the eastern regions, where the energy needs are growing. However, the problem that will arise at this point is not to cause too many losses while transferring the energy. Experts have already started working on this issue.
Source: China International Radio
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