China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) announced on Monday that construction of a 50 MW trough-based concentrated solar power plant at an altitude of 4,550 meters started in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region.

According to the press release issued by the company based in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, the facility is located in Damxung County in the regional capital Lhasa.

Using parabolic trough technology with thermal oil as the heat transfer fluid, it features a mirror field of 242,000 square meters and a 6-hour molten salt energy storage system, enabling nighttime power generation.

The solar thermal plant is part of a solar thermal and photovoltaic (PV) integrated project, which can absorb curtailed PV power and effectively compensate for the intermittency and fluctuation of PV generation.

Construction of the PV section, designed with 400 MW of power generation capacity, began in September last year.

Located in a cold, high-altitude zone with low oxygen, the site allows construction only from April to October. The team has installed heating, oxygen supply and a hyperbaric chamber to ensure workers' health and safety.

Invested and developed by CGN New Energy (Damxung) Co., Ltd., the integrated project is scheduled for full commissioning by 2027.

Once operational, it is expected to generate about 719 million kWh annually, saving roughly 216,900 tonnes of coal equivalent and cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 652,300 tonnes.

The project has already created over 2,000 local jobs and generated more than 5.2 million yuan (approximately 753,600 U.S. dollars) in local economic income through labor and equipment use.

Despite being burdened by its high altitude and harsh environment, Xizang is in a strong position to develop the clean energy sector, thanks to its abundant solar, wind and water resources.

According to its government work report, the region aims to increase its installed power generation capacity from 13 million kW in 2025 to 20 million kW in 2026, with integrated power bases combining wind, solar and hydropower to be built at different locations.