State Grid Corporation of China has begun the construction of an 800-kV, 8 GW ultra-high voltage direct current (UHVDC) transmission line that will link northern China’s Ningxia Autonomous Region to the central province of Hunan. The project will run for a total of 1,634 km across six provincial-level regions and will require an investment estimated at CNY28.1bn (US$3.9bn).
Once completed, the transmission project will be able to supply over 36 TWh/year of electricity to the Hunan Province, which has a strong power demand to sustain its growth. Completion is expected for 2025.
In March 2023, State Grid Corporation of China started the construction of another 800-kV, 8 GW UHVDC transmissions line linking the provinces of Gansu and Shandong, as well as a 750-kV UHV power transmission project in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region.
These projects are part of a national plan unveiled in 2022 to develop clean energy, including wind and solar PV, in China's deserts and barren lands. China plans to peak carbon dioxide emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.