Xinjiang, located in northwestern China, in 2014 contributed $150bn, or 1.3%, to the country’s overall nominal GDP, up 8% from 2013. Xinjiang has the largest land area of any administrative division in the country, and its coal and oil reserves are 40% and 30%, respectively, of the country’s total.
As of year-end 2014, Xinjiang had an installed generating capacity of 50GW, of which 65% (32 GW) was coal, 16% (8GW) was wind, and 8% (4GW) was solar PV. In 2014, 81% of the total 177.3TWh power generated in Xinjiang came from coal. The balance was supplied by zero-carbon technologies, mainly wind power.
Thanks to its abundant fossil fuel resources, Xinjiang has become a backbone of fuel supply for China’s economic growth. Since 2010, China’s central government has planned to build a long-distance transmission network to export the electricity generated within Xinjiang to the far east of the country. The transmission system was to replace the carbon-intensive transportation of carrying the coal and oil by rail. This plan has attracted a flush of investments in building power plants in Xinjiang, which has lifted Xinjiang’s overall economy substantially.
In early 2015, the National Energy Administration approved 5GW of onshore wind projects on top of 3GW already planned for Xinjiang for the next five years. Also approved was 1.8GW of utility scale solar PV.
In December 2012, Xinjiang’s government released its 12th five-year plan for GHG emission action. The plan sets a target to reduce carbon intensity in the Xinjiang economy 15% by 2015, compared with the 2010 level. To achieve this goal, the local administrator has been focusing on establishing a carbon auditing system, implementing caps on public building energy consumption and promoting new energy vehicles and LED applications.
In addition, the plan requires that enterprises picked by the Xinjiang government are to submit their annual energy consumption and GHG emission data directly to the local energy administration department and statistical bureau. While it is too soon to report the province’s progress on its 2015 goals, the GHG action plan is pushing Xinjiang toward significant carbon-emissions improvements.