Zigui pilots solar power in tea orchards

By Chen Zai. 

A 100MW solar power plant built across tea gardens in Zigui County has been connected to the public grid and started generating electricity.

The project spans 3,500 mu (233.33 hectares) with a total investment of 625 million yuan (US$90.61 million). It has transformed the hillsides and tea gardens into a "green power station," generating 130 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually - enough to power approximately 124,500 households.

On a bright sunny day, local farmer Mr. Li operated a harvester through the tea garden, where plants thrive beneath rows of photovoltaic panels.

"Not a single ray of sunshine goes to waste; it's all utilized, allowing us to both produce tea and generate electricity," said Mr. Li.

The photovoltaic panels were specially designed to optimize light absorption while creating a beneficial microclimate for tea trees. The generated electricity is fed into the public power grid via newly installed transmission lines.

The power station is estimated to operate for 25 years, generating 130 million kWh annually. This output is equivalent to saving 41,370 tons of coal and reducing CO2 emissions by 1.08 million tons each year, similar to planting 60,000 mu of forest.

According to the Zigui County Development and Reform Bureau, in 2024, the county's photovoltaic power generation hit 272 million kilowatt-hours, with the industrial comprehensive output value exceeding 300 million yuan, the highest among counties in Yichang.

As a national pilot county for distributed photovoltaic energy, Zigui has increased its photovoltaic capacity to 75,700 kilowatts by installing PV panels on barren hillsides, low-yield tea gardens, and villagers' rooftops. The county has shifted its energy strategy to a solar-hydropower hybrid model, with the installed solar capacity expected to surpass hydropower for the first time this year.

Reporter Hu Xingjun and Photographer Peng Qiang contributed to this story.