New projects

The Togtoh base is just one of three renewable energy projects under construction in Inner Mongolia that will serve Beijing, the administration said.

Moreover, the region is forging ahead with the necessary procedures to start another planned renewable project with installed capacity of more than 10 million kW, as well as two planned power transmission lines.

The administration is actively "coordinating local governments and energy companies to make all-out efforts to guarantee the green electricity supply to the capital by accelerating the implementation of these projects", it said.

When all of the projects are completed, they are expected to generate almost 13.8 billion kWh of green power a year, the administration said. That will see the use of standard coal reduced by 4 million tons and carbon dioxide emissions will fall by 11.4 million tons a year.

Authorities in Beijing and Inner Mongolia have had frequent meetings about another even larger renewable energy base with a total installed capacity of 10 million kilowatts in Xiliin Gol League, one of the prefecture-level areas in Inner Mongolia closest to Beijing.

At a work conference to coordinate paired assistance between Beijing and Inner Mongolia, held in the autonomous region in July, the regions fully endorsed the Xiliin Gol League project, according to a statement from the league's government to China Daily.

The heads of Inner Mongolia and Beijing asked the departments under their jurisdiction to accelerate the development of the project, it said.

In November, the heads met again in Beijing to promote the paired assistance program. As a result of the meeting, the Inner Mongolia authorities will sign a framework agreement with Beijing Energy Holding to support projects in which the company invests in the autonomous region, including the Xiliin Gol League project.

The document has already been signed by the Beijing company, and it was sent to the autonomous region's development and reform commission and energy administration in January, it said. The two departments are undertaking official procedures to give it the green light.

The government of Xiliin Gol League said the project, which has total investment of approximately 38.7 billion yuan, will include a flexible direct current power grid that will transmit power directly to the capital.

According to a 2021-25 energy development plan issued by the Beijing government, the Chinese capital will work to raise the amount of green power brought in from outside to 30 billion kWh by 2025.

The amount of green electricity transmitted to Beijing from other regions reached more than 18 billion kWh in 2021, compared with 720 million in 2013, according to Lai Xianyu, deputy head of the Beijing Commission of Development and Reform.

The increase was achieved because Beijing supported its energy companies in building large-scale renewable energy bases outside of the capital and also because the city has signed strategic cooperation agreements with several regions to boost cross-regional power transmission in a concerted manner, he said.