In the southern mountainous area of Tiechanggou in Tori County in April, the snow is beginning to melt and the yellow soil is exposed. In the valley where the wind used to howl, now the roar of excavators can be heard. Forklifts and transport vehicles shuttle between the hills at an altitude of 1200 to 1600 meters, like a group of busy "worker ants", leveling the foundations and building roads for the 50 10MW wind turbines that are about to stand here. This once silent Gobi wilderness is now transforming into a "treasure trove" of clean energy with the start of the third phase of Tianrun's 500000 kilowatt wind power project.

The green electricity ledger brought by the strong wind

Tori County is located in a windy area. In the past, strong winds were a "trouble" in the eyes of herdsmen, but now they are a unique resource for developing the wind power industry. According to Tori Tianrun Wind Power Co., Ltd., the total investment of the project exceeds 1.5 billion yuan, with an installed capacity of 500MW. The power of a single unit can reach up to 10MW, making it a high-capacity onshore wind power model that can greatly improve land use efficiency. After the completion of the project, it is expected that the annual power generation will reach 1.335 billion kilowatt hours, which is sufficient to meet the annual electricity demand of 500000 ordinary households. On the environmental ledger, about 400000 tons of standard coal can be saved annually, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by over 1.3 million tons, equivalent to planting tens of millions of trees, which is an important part of Xinjiang's implementation of the "dual carbon" goal.

The 'real gold and silver' at the doorstep

After the project started, I drove a transport truck on the construction site and earned over 6000 yuan a month, while also taking care of my family, "said local herder Batu. Project construction is not only an energy project, but also a livelihood project. During the construction period, the project can directly employ more than 300 local people, covering multiple positions such as drivers, welders, and logistics. What benefits local enterprises even more is that 80% of the building materials used in the project are purchased locally, which is expected to drive the output value of related industries such as sand and concrete to over 50 million yuan. In addition, after the project enters the operation period, it is expected that the annual tax payment will exceed 30 million yuan. This "real money" will directly enrich the local finance and be used to improve local infrastructure and public services.

A tough battle ahead of the wind season

We need to complete full capacity grid connection before the end of September, so that these windmills can start operating before the wind season arrives, "said project manager Li Shengjie, pointing to the construction drawings. Faced with the hilly and mountainous environment with high altitude and complex terrain, the construction team adopted the strategy of "multi-point synchronous promotion", repairing roads while leveling the site. The newly built 220kV substation will collect and boost the electricity generated by the wind turbines, and ultimately connect it to the power grid. This is not only a race against time, but also a practical test of China's wind power technology applied in high-altitude complex terrain.

With the completion of the last concrete pouring, this wind farm standing in the core area of the Silk Road Economic Belt will transform the roaring mountain winds into green kinetic energy that illuminates thousands of homes, injecting strong impetus into the high-quality development of the Tacheng area.Editor/Yang Meiling