Tibet: Electricity Beautifies the Snowy Plateau

Text/Reporters Dang Yali and Suolang Doji

Looking at the majestic Mount Kailash in the distance, Tashi, a farmer and herdsman from Purang County, Ngari Prefecture, Tibet, said excitedly: "The construction of the power grid interconnection project between Ngari and Central Tibet has started. In the future, we can use electricity from the large power grid!"

The Ali-Tibet-Central Electricity Network Project is another ultra-high-altitude and extremely difficult power transmission and transformation project after the Qinghai-Tibet, Sichuan-Tibet and Tibet-Central "Electricity Skyroad". Once completed, it will completely end the long-term isolated operation history of the Ali power grid, and enable farmers and herdsmen in the seven counties along the project to use the long-awaited "big grid electricity", effectively solving and improving the electricity problems of nearly 380,000 people.

The power industry in Tibet began in the 1920s. In 1928, the Tibetan Kashag government at that time introduced equipment from Britain and built a 92-kilowatt Beijiao Duodi Power Station, which mainly supplied electricity to the Kashag government, the mint and the nobility. Later, due to inadequate equipment operation and maintenance and insufficient spare parts, the power generation stopped in 1946.

In 1959, Tibet implemented democratic reform, abolished the dark feudal serfdom, established a new social system, and entered a new era of economic and social development. Over the past few decades, Tibet's power industry has achieved remarkable achievements, fundamentally reversing the power "bottleneck" problem that has restricted Tibet's economic and social development, and the Tibet power grid has entered the era of 500 kV ultra-high voltage large power grid.

“Hey, why are the tree trunks standing on the side of the road covered with spider webs? There are rows of electric poles, and Naqin is busy generating electricity day and night…” It was this song “Visiting the New City” that made Tibet’s Naqin Power Station famous throughout the country and also marked the beginning of Tibet’s power construction.

The construction of the Lhasa Najin Power Station started in 1958. In 1965, all six units were completed and generating electricity, ending the history of Lhasa people using pine cones and butter lamps for lighting. It was hailed as the "Night Pearl of Lhasa". Subsequently, backbone power stations such as the Lhasa West Suburb Power Plant, Shannan Woka Power Plant, Shigatse Tanghe Power Plant, Linzhi Bayi Power Plant, Qamdo Power Plant, and Lhasa Thermal Power Plant were built in various parts of Tibet. Tibet's electricity has grown from nothing to something, from small to large, and the scale of installed power capacity has gradually expanded.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the Yangbajing Geothermal Power Station and the Yanghu Power Station accounted for more than 60% of the output of the Lhasa power grid, which not only greatly improved the power supply situation of the Lhasa power grid, but also made important contributions to alleviating the contradiction between electricity supply and demand.

At the beginning of the 21st century, Tibet's electricity entered a period of rapid development. A number of backbone power stations such as the Qamdo Jinhe Hydropower Station, Lhasa Zhikong Hydropower Station, Ali Shiquanhe Hydropower Station, Linzhi Xueka Hydropower Station and Laohuzui Hydropower Station were built and put into operation one after another. The Qamdo Jinhe Hydropower Station started the reform and innovation of Tibet's power construction and management model, and the installed capacity of Tibet's power grid increased significantly. In 2014, the Zangmu Hydropower Station was put into operation with an installed capacity of 540,000 kilowatts, which played an important role in alleviating the contradiction of power shortage in Tibet and became one of the important power stations for "exporting Tibetan electricity" during the summer flood season.

"Tibet used to suffer from electricity shortage, and when winter came, we had no way to guarantee electricity for production. Now in winter, we no longer have to worry about electricity for production. We can use electricity 24 hours a day, which has greatly improved production efficiency." Dong Zhisheng, head of Tibet Gaozheng Cement Plant, said with emotion.

While the power source was being built, the power grid in Tibet continued to develop, from a power station with a distribution network in the 1960s and 1970s to gradually forming small regional power grids in various cities, and the voltage level was continuously upgraded from 6 kV, 35 kV to 110 kV. Entering the 21st century, the development of the power grid in Tibet entered the fast lane, and three "power sky roads" were built successively - the Qinghai-Tibet, Sichuan-Tibet, and Tibet-Central power grid interconnection projects, which realized the interconnection of the power grid in Tibet with the power grids in Sichuan, Qinghai and the whole country, fundamentally solving the long-standing power shortage contradiction in the power grid in Tibet, and effectively promoting the development and export of clean energy such as hydropower in Tibet, which gave wings to the leapfrog development of Tibet's economy and society.

By the end of 2018, Tibet had formed a comprehensive energy system dominated by hydropower, with solar energy, wind energy and geothermal energy complementing each other. The total installed capacity of electricity reached 3.321 million kilowatts, which is 3,992 times the installed capacity of power generation in 1959; the total electricity consumption of the whole society reached 6.902 billion kilowatt-hours, which is 7,843 times the electricity consumption in 1959; Tibet's main power grid covers 63 counties, and the power supply population is 2.76 million, accounting for 82% of the total population of the region. The maximum power load of the Tibet power grid has broken the historical record for more than ten consecutive years, with the maximum load reaching 1.44 million kilowatts. Since the historic breakthrough of "Tibetan power transmission" in 2015, the Tibet power grid has received more than 6 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity and transmitted 3 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity.

In February 2018, Yumai Township in Longzi County, Shannan City, Tibet, accessed electricity from the main power grid. Dawa, secretary of the township party branch, said happily: "After the electricity was connected, more and more tourists came to Yumai. Now there are many construction sites in the township, and they are all building houses to prepare for 'farmhouses'." State Grid Tibet Power has implemented a new round of rural power grid transformation and upgrading projects and the construction of power grids in the "three regions and three prefectures", providing power guarantee for Tibet's rural revitalization strategy and accelerating the construction of well-off villages in Tibet's border areas.

For a long time, the state has successively implemented the first, second and third phases of rural power grid transformation and upgrading projects and the "electricity for every household" project, which has greatly solved the problem of safe and reliable electricity use in Tibet's agricultural and pastoral areas. Especially since 2007, the State Grid Corporation has fully utilized the group's advantages and professional advantages, and continuously increased its support for Tibet. It has successively implemented and completed the power construction and rural power grid transformation and upgrading projects in areas without electricity, a new round of two-year battles for rural power grid transformation and upgrading, and a series of benevolent projects and popular projects that benefit agricultural and pastoral areas such as Tibet's deeply impoverished areas, the "three districts and three prefectures", and the access to large-scale grid electricity. It has invested more than 3 billion yuan in total, implemented 7 billion yuan in assistance funds for the construction of the Tibet power grid, and selected more than 2,000 people to work as secondment personnel, effectively alleviating the shortage of talents of the State Grid Tibet Electric Power Co., Ltd. and greatly easing the operating pressure of the State Grid Tibet Electric Power.

At the same time, State Grid Corporation of China has provided strong help and special assistance to State Grid Tibet Power in grid construction, operation and maintenance, rural power management, information support, etc., and arranged 7 provincial companies to provide counterpart support to 7 prefecture-level companies in Tibet, and the top 100 prefecture-level companies in the mainland to provide counterpart support to county power supply companies in Tibet, effectively improving the management level of State Grid Tibet Power and helping Tibet win the battle against poverty and build a well-off society in an all-round way.

Over the past 70 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, especially since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, under the cordial care of the Party Central Committee, with the strong support of relevant state ministries and commissions, and under the strong leadership of the Party Committee and government of the autonomous region and the State Grid Corporation of China, generations of Tibetan power workers have carried forward the "Old Tibet Spirit", worked hard, strived and made contributions. Tibet's power industry has undergone earth-shaking changes and achieved remarkable achievements that have attracted worldwide attention.

"At present, the Tibet power grid has entered the era of 500 kV ultra-high voltage large power grid. The coverage of the main power grid has extended to 64 counties, with a population of more than 2.8 million people using electricity. The power supply guarantee capability has undergone fundamental changes, especially in 2015, when the historic breakthrough of 'exporting Tibetan electricity' was achieved, which has strongly supported the economic and social development and long-term stability of Tibet." Liu Xiaoming, Chairman and Party Secretary of State Grid Tibet Electric Power Co., Ltd. said.