The photovoltaic industry, as a clean and renewable energy industry, has broad development prospects. On October 24, 2023, the construction of the National Energy Group Ningxia Tengger Desert Scenery Base, the largest Sago Desert Scenery Base project in China, and the Phase II 2 million kilowatt photovoltaic project officially started.

The second phase project started in the southeast edge of Tengger Desert is a 2 million kilowatt aeolian sandy land project, covering an area of about 60000 mu, which is equivalent to 5600 football fields. The project also includes the construction of two booster stations and one energy storage power station. The Tengger Desert Scenery Base in Ningxia mainly focuses on large-scale wind power and photovoltaic construction, with a total installed capacity of 17 million kilowatts. It is the first base project to be filed, started and put into operation among the national ten million kilowatt "Sage Desert" bases.

Chang Zhanding, Director of the Engineering Construction Department of Longyuan Power Ningxia Company of the National Energy Group, said that after the second phase of the project is completed and connected to the grid, it is expected to provide 3.96 billion kWh of clean electricity annually, save 1.207 million tons of standard coal, and meet the annual electricity consumption of 3.3 million households.

In recent years, the country has repeatedly proposed to accelerate the construction of large-scale wind power and photovoltaic bases in desert, Gobi, and desert areas. Data shows that the desertification land area in China is 2.61 million square kilometers, accounting for 27% of the total land area. Border deserts and Gobi wastelands, this barren land, are also the areas with the most abundant solar and wind energy resources in China. With the construction of wind and photovoltaic bases, this area has become a new blessing in the energy field.

Li Chaoxiang, Project Manager of Longyuan Power Ningxia Tengger, National Energy Group: We naturally form a barrier against wind and sand by building photovoltaic arrays, and use grass squares on the surface to achieve sand prevention, fixation, and control. In the first phase of the photovoltaic project, which covers an area of 28000 acres, the desertification control area has exceeded 26000 acres.

With the rapid development of the photovoltaic manufacturing industry, more and more enterprises are choosing to invest and construct in the northwest region. Various manufacturing enterprises and raw material suppliers from upstream to middle and downstream have settled in the region. The photovoltaic manufacturing industry is expanding from being concentrated in one or two links to a coordinated layout of the entire industry chain. In the Tengger Desert scenery base in Ningxia, the project has successfully explored a new path of "new energy construction+protection and restoration of the Sake Desert ecosystem", realizing a new business of photovoltaic "power generation on board, planting between boards, and restoration under boards".

At the construction site, the shining photovoltaic panels and endless grass squares transformed the desert into a vibrant vast sea. Next, the project will carry out experiments on planting traditional Chinese medicine and herbage, striving to create the first demonstration benchmark for the "Shage Waste" energy base, showcasing a sustainable development model that combines new energy construction with ecological protection. Editor/Zhao E