The Qiongjie Wind Power Project, with its highest turbine foundation located at an altitude of 5,370 meters, was successfully connected to the grid on November 17.
The Qiongjie Wind Power Project, with its highest turbine foundation located at an altitude of 5,370 meters, was successfully connected to the grid on November 17. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
Operated by China Huadian Corporation Ltd., the project has set two new records: the largest single-turbine capacity wind farm in the Xizang Autonomous Region and the highest-altitude operating wind power project globally.
Situated in Qongjie County, Shannan City, the project has a total installed capacity of 60 megawatts, consisting of eleven 5 MW and one 6.25 MW turbines, along with a 12 MW/48 MWh grid-forming energy storage system. Once fully operational, it will provide clean electricity to approximately 120,000 households annually, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 128,700 per year.
Constructing a wind farm at 5,370 meters posed unprecedented challenges. The project team optimized logistics to secure equipment and personnel transport, improved concrete mix designs with an intelligent temperature-control system for low-temperature construction, and pioneered single-blade hoisting technology above 5,000 meters, reducing required workspace by about 66 percent and expanding the operational wind speed range. With its successful commissioning, the project has set a global benchmark for ultra-high-altitude wind power development and contributed replicable experience and engineering solutions for similar projects in harsh environments.
(Executive editor: Yuan Ting)
