Photo taken on May 28, 2026 shows the molten salt tower in Gobi Desert of Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Photo: China News Service

This 50-megawatt solar thermal power plant - one of China's first generation of solar thermal power demonstration projects and Xinjiang's first solar thermal power plant - fills a crucial gap in renewable energy infrastructure.

Engineers inspect the equipment at the molten salt tower in Gobi Desert of Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, May 28, 2026. Photo: China News Service

Heliostats reflect sunlight to heat molten salt in Gobi Desert of Hami, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, May 28, 2026. Photo: China News Service