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China is building ultrahigh-voltage power lines to carry solar and wind energy to the populated eastern seaboard.
PHOTO: GILLES SABRIÉ/NYTIMES
Keith Bradsher
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- China has built 42 ultrahigh-voltage power lines, exceeding US capacity, to transmit clean energy from the west to its populous east, using efficient direct current technology.
- This rapid expansion, driven by ambitious energy policies and faster-than-expected renewable adoption, aims to reduce coal use, toxic air pollution, and dependence on imported fuels.
- Despite some local concerns about electric shocks and risks, China's top-down planning enables faster grid construction compared to other countries facing public dissent.
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GUQUAN, China – In China, the longest ultrahigh-voltage power line stretches more than 3,200km from the far north-west to the populous south-east – the equivalent of transmitting electricity from Idaho to New York City.
The power line starts in a remote desert in north-west China, where vast arrays of solar panels and wind turbines generate electricity on a monumental scale. It snakes south-east, following an ancient river between mountain ranges before reaching Anhui province near Shanghai, home to 61 million people and some of China’s most successful electric car and robot manufacturers.
