STORY: New energy revitalizes coal mining subsidence area in China's Datong
SHOOTING TIME: June 4, 2024
DATELINE: June 5, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:06
LOCATION: DATONG, China
CATEGORY: ENVIRONMENT

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the base
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): WANG ZHIWEI, Chairman of a new energy company based in Datong
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): HAN ZHICHENG, Local photovoltaic power generation monitoring center

STORYLINE:

Datong City in north China's Shanxi Province was once heavily-reliant on coal mining.

Due to prolonged and large-scale mining, there is a large subsidence area of about 1,687 square kilometers in the city.

Thanks to the efforts to tap into renewable energy, the ecological environment here has changed a lot.

The construction of the Datong Coal Mining Subsidence Area National Advanced Technology Photovoltaic Demonstration Base began in September 2015. Since then, 13 enterprises have invested in and helped to operate the photovoltaic panels.
SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): WANG ZHIWEI, Chairman of a new energy company based in Datong
"After our project was launched, we planted green plants under the photovoltaic panels. This helps with water and soil conservation, land restoration, and environmental management."

The base was built to generate a total power of 1.5 million kilowatts. It consists of twelve 100,000-kilowatt projects, six 50,000-kilowatt projects, three 220-kilovolt gathering stations, and 68 locations for monitoring subsidence conditions.

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): HAN ZHICHENG, Local photovoltaic power generation monitoring center
"The visualization system includes data on power generation, irradiance, component attenuation rates, and ground subsidence. There are 68 monitoring points distributed within the base to monitor the subsidence situation in our area in real time."

Data provided by the municipal energy bureau showed that Datong's new and renewable energy capacity reached 8.75 million kilowatts last year. This accounts for 52 percent of the total installed energy capacity. The grid-connected capacity for photovoltaic and wind power reached 8.62 million kilowatts, making Datong one of Shanxi Province's largest generators of renewable energy.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Datong, China.
(XHTV)