DATONG - The city of Datong, famous for its rich coal resources in Shanxi province, is being transformed into a new center for solar energy.

"During the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) period, we have 432 projects with a total investment of 536.4 billion yuan ($84.8 billion) to help the city's transformation from a traditional high-carbon city into a low-carbon one," said Geng Yanbo, mayor of the city.

He said the city's target is to raise the proportion of clean energy production to 25 percent by the end of 2015.

Construction of a polysilicon factory with an annual production capacity of 25,000 tons will start next month, said Geng. Polysilicon is the main material used in solar panels.

Golden Concord Holdings, the largest polysilicon manufacturer in the world, plans to invest 14.68 billion yuan on five solar energy projects, including a polysilicon factory and a solar power station, in the southeast of Datong.

Datong has a huge reserve of coal that can be mined for another 100 years, according to Geng. The total coal output of Datong in 2011 was 103.48 million tons, about one-eighth of the total amount of Shanxi province.

However, it was other geographical advantages that made Datong attractive to the solar power industry.

The city is located on the northeast side of the Loess Plateau at an altitude of 1,000 to 1,500 meters and enjoys on average 2,800 hours of sunshine a year. Datong is classified as a rich area of solar resources by the wind and solar energy resources assessment center of the China Meteorological Administration.