URUMQI, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- A short drive west of Korla in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, a vast desert landscape has been transformed into a shimmering sea of solar panels, underscoring the region's green energy push.
Operated by PetroChina Tarim Oilfield, the 1.3-gigawatt photovoltaic (PV) project in the Shangku high-tech zone is one of the largest in Xinjiang and the oilfield's first million-kilowatt-class plant.
Spanning 35,000 mu (about 2,333 hectares), the facility has generated over 1.6 billion kWh of clean power since connecting to the grid in January 2025.
Inside its centralized control room, real-time data enables full-process digital management, with just a few staff members overseeing the extensive site using intelligent cleaning robots and drones for routine inspection.
Lei Ting, executive director of Tarim Oilfield's new energy department, said the company is expanding green power supply systems to help build a zero-carbon industrial park, offering a replicable model for low-carbon transformation in the petrochemical sector.
The Shangku project is one of many across Xinjiang. From the 1-gigawatt wind-solar hub near the region's capital Urumqi to the 4-gigawatt solar farm in southern Xinjiang's Ruoqiang County, these initiatives exemplify the region's commitment to a low-carbon future.
By the end of 2025, Xinjiang had built six 10-gigawatt-class renewable energy bases spanning the entire region, with total installed renewable capacity reaching 169 million kilowatts, or 64 percent of its total power capacity.
As a key generating end of China's west-to-east power transmission endeavor, Xinjiang had cumulatively transmitted 304.36 billion kWh of renewable electricity to other regions as of March 18, 2026, accounting for roughly 30 percent of its total outbound power supply, according to the local branch of State Grid.
In 2025, Xinjiang's green power trading volume reached 43.43 billion kWh, a surge of 230 percent year on year, and a record high equivalent to saving 13.13 million tonnes of standard coal consumption and cutting 35.47 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, Xinjiang Power Exchange Center noted.
Nationwide, by the end of 2025, China's total installed wind and solar capacity had reached 1.84 billion kilowatts, surpassing thermal power for the first time in history.
"Renewable energy has laid a 'green foundation' for Xinjiang's economic development, unlocking tremendous momentum for green transition and high-quality growth, while better benefiting people's livelihoods and fostering social cohesion," said Song Xueqiang, director of the Xinjiang Power Exchange Center's trading department.
Xinjiang's efforts are part of China's broader strategy to build large-scale wind and solar power bases in its desert regions, a very important pillar of the national green transition.
"We are planning a large-scale renewable energy export base in southern Xinjiang, integrating wind, solar, gas-fired and pumped-storage hydropower to build a gas-supported clean energy hub that serves national energy security and the green transition," Lei said. ■
