The 15th Five-Year Plan blueprint outlines a strategy to deepen the new energy security approach, accelerate the development of a clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient modern energy system, and build a robust energy sector. In this inaugural year of the plan, Sichuan is scaling up its clean energy development, speeding up the construction of next-generation power grids, and promoting local consumption of clean energy as it pushes to become a leading clean energy province.
On the upper reaches of the Jinsha River, the Yebatan Hydropower Station—the highest double-curvature arch dam project under construction in China—is being built at an accelerated pace, with the goal of achieving full-capacity commissioning by the end of the year. Further downstream, the Huadian Batang 1.2-gigawatt photovoltaic plant, operational this year, generates approximately 5.53 million kilowatt-hours of green electricity daily. Through this integrated development model, the river basin is set to achieve complementary scheduling between hydro and solar power. He Funong, deputy general manager of Huadian Jinsha River Upper Reaches Hydropower Development Co., Ltd.'s Yebatan branch, noted that while solar peaks during the day and drops at night, coordinated operations with stations like Yebatan allow hydropower to flexibly adjust their output, "smoothing out" fluctuating green energy before transmission and significantly boosting supply stability.
Sichuan, a vital clean energy base in China, leads the nation with over 100 million kilowatts of installed hydropower capacity. However, uneven distribution of wind and solar resources has led to suboptimal resource coordination. Since the start of this year, Sichuan has been accelerating the construction of integrated hydro-solar-wind bases in the Yalong River, upper Jinsha River, and Dadu River basins, fostering synchronized development across hydro, wind, solar, storage, and hydrogen. He Maorong, head of the New Energy and Renewable Energy Division at the Sichuan Provincial Energy Bureau, highlighted that this approach encourages intensive and scaled growth of new energy, converting resource advantages into green power supply strengths and driving linked industries like computing and electricity.
As the Chengdu-Chongqing economic zone gains momentum and emerging industries flourish, Sichuan's power supply is transforming from a one-way power warehouse into a multi-directional resource pool and energy hub. This year, the region introduced policy incentives encouraging large consumers, such as data centers and green hydrogen producers, to purchase electricity directly from renewable energy companies, facilitating greater on-site consumption and local conversion of clean energy.
Looking ahead to the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Sichuan is committed to building a clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient modern energy system. The province aims to have hydropower and new energy installations exceed 110 million and 100 million kilowatts, respectively, by 2030, along with establishing new energy storage projects exceeding 10 million kilowatts to meet electricity demand of over 590 billion kilowatt-hours. Yu Long, deputy director of the Sichuan Provincial Energy Bureau, stated that the province will implement projects to double both hydropower and new energy capacities, strengthen effective policies like direct green power connections, deepen the integration of technological and industrial innovation, and vigorously promote mutual empowerment between artificial intelligence and energy, further bolstering the competitive edge of its energy sector.