Shilin solar plant begins operation
The first phase of the 66-megawatt photovoltaic solar power plant in Shilin, about 70 kilometers outside of Kunming, went online and began feeding the electrical grid at the beginning of the month, according to Xinhua Net.

The 9.1 billion yuan project is being jointly financed by Yunnan Power Investment New Energy Development Company and the Chinese photovoltaic manufacturing giant Suntech Power Holdings. It will eventually include 100 megawatts of experimental and demonstration solar capacity in addition to the 66 megawatts of grid-connected capacity.

The Chinese solar energy industry has benefited from government subsidies for utility-grade solar energy projects and Yunnan's high elevation and relatively clear skies make it an attractive location for solar energy projects.

For now, the Shilin plant is the largest photovoltaic solar project in China, and perhaps Asia. It will, however, eventually be dwarfed by a planned 360-megawatt project north of Kunming and a planned one-gigawatt photovoltaic installation in Qinghai province's Qaidam basin.

Although it remains unclear whether the planned capacity of the Qaidam project will ever be reached, the first 30-megawatt phase of that project is already under construction.

As a point of comparison, a large coal-fired power plant might have a generation capacity in the range of 500 megawatts to one gigawatt.

Yunnan foreign trade dropped in 2009
Official statistics for Yunnan's trade with foreign countries were released last week. Yunnan's foreign trade amounted to US$8 billion for 2009, with US$4.5 billion in exports and US$3.5 billion in imports. Overall trade fell by almost 16.5 percent compared to 2008, with a 9.5 percent decrease in exports and an almost 24 percent drop in imports.

Although the drop seems rather precipitous, Hou Liqun, Secretary General of the Yunnan Association of Enterprises with Foreign Investment was quoted in the Spring City Evening Post as saying that, "the data is better than many people expected."

Hou also expressed a belief that Yunnan's foreign trade will increase over the course of 2010, partly following in the wake of the global financial recovery, and partly on the basis of opportunities inherent in the new ASEAN Free Trade Area.

Yunnanese among earthquake victims
Three peacekeepers from Yunnan were among the eight Chinese nationals that were killed in the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that devastated the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas last week.

All eight died in the collapse of the Port-au-Prince building housing the U.N. Stabilization Mission in Haiti, where they were attending a meeting.

Their bodies were returned to Beijing on Monday and family members were expected to attend a memorial service today.

Kunming to Sydney or Melbourne via Guangzhou
Aussies living in Kunming might be interested to learn that China Southern Airlines recently announced new routes connecting several Chinese cities, including Kunming, to both Sydney and Melbourne via the airline's Guangzhou hub. In its press release, China Southern claims that flying through Guangzhou will shorten the routes by two hours compared to connecting through Shanghai.

Photo: Xinhua Net

Kunming's Second Ring Road open to traffic
After one year of demolition and reconstruction, Kunming's second ring road (二环) is now open to test traffic and will officially open to the public on Wednesday.

Local media is gushing about the completion of the ring road, which will serve as the linchpin in the city's "four rings, 17 spokes" traffic plan, in which expansion of the city's traffic system from two ring roads centered around Green Lake Park to four ring roads – the fourth encircling Dianchi Lake – will shift the center of the city's traffic structure southward, coinciding with the development of "New Kunming" in Chenggong.

According to government traffic officials, once on the second ring road, it will be possible for cars to reach destinations including Chenggong, Anning, Jinning, Kunyang, Haikou, and Songming. Travel time from to Yiliang, Luquan, Shilin and Xundian will be reduced to one hour.

Dali – Lijiang rail line open to public tomorrow
Beginning tomorrow, the new Dali-Lijiang rail line (大丽铁路) will officially open to the public, linking the two popular tourist destinations by rail for the first time.

The Dali-Lijiang passenger line will operate daily, with hard seats on the L9016/7 (Dali to Lijiang) and the L9018/5 (Lijiang to Dali) costing 34 yuan. Total time for the journey is approximately three hours and 45 minutes.

The L9016/7 Leaves Dali at 9:26 am, stops for two minutes at Shangguan at 10:51 and arrives at Lijiang at 1:12 pm. The L9018/5 leaves Lijiang East Station at 1:45 pm, stops in Shangguan for two minutes at 3:59 pm and arrives in Dali at 5:26 pm.

Southwest China's first IMAX theater to open in Kunming
At the end of this month Kunming will become the first city in Southwest China with an IMAX Theater, according to government-run BBS clzg.cn.

The theater, which features a 12 meters high by 21 meters wide screen, is located in the new Shuncheng Shopping Center on Dongfeng Xi Lu. The shopping center, which will also be home to retail outlets including Zara and Papa John's, is built on the old Shuncheng Muslim quarter, which prior to its demolition in 2004 was a dilapidated but vibrant neighborhood filled with Hui and Uighur restaurants.

Image: news.kunming.cn

Kunming's reputation as China's 'solar city' has been bolstered by a recently announced solar power plant project which will be the largest in Yunnan province upon completion.

Yunnan Dingxing New Energy Development Co Ltd (云南鼎兴新能源开发有限公司) announced that it will invest 4 billion yuan (US$580 million) in an amorphous silicon power plant and equipment manufacturing facility located approximately 150 kilometers north of downtown Kunming.

Work on the 1.3 square kilometer facility – which is expected to have an installed generation capacity of 360 megawatts upon completion – is expected to begin 'soon' according to a company press release.

Once finished, the new Dongchuan plant is expected to join a 3.7 billion yuan power plant project in Shilin to make Kunming one of China and Asia's largest solar power generation bases.

Hongyun Group and Honghe Group, two of Yunnan province's largest tobacco companies intend to merge, a move that will form China's largest and the world's fourth-largest cigarette producer by volume, according to Chinese media reports.

The planned merger, which is still awaiting regulatory approval, suggests a move towards consolidation in China's highly fragmented tobacco industry. China is the world's largest producer and consumer of cigarettes, with a market of more than 300 million smokers, a market that is still growing.

If the merger goes through, the new company is expected to be the world's fourth-largest cigarette producer after Philip Morris International, British American Tobacco and Japan Tobacco Inc.

Yet in terms of revenue, the two companies' combined 2007 revenues are less than 30 percent of the revenue of current number four Imperial Tobacco Plc, partially because cigarettes in China are some of the cheapest in the world. According to their websites, in 2007 Hongyun Group posted 29 billion yuan (US$4.2 billion) in revenue and Honghe took 16 billion yuan.

The proposed company would be named Hongyun Honghe Tobacco Group Company Limited (红云红河烟草集团有限责任公司) and would have production facilities in Kunming, Qujing, Honghe, Zhaotong, Huize in Yunnan province, plus facilities in Xinjiang.

After the merger, the company would produce several of China's larger cigarette brands, including Yunyan, Honghe, Hongshancha, Shilin and Lesser Panda.

Related article: Kunming: Bong city, PRC

The small city of Shilin (石林), located about 70 kilometers southeast of Kunming, is primarily known for being home to the Stone Forest, part of a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of China's most famous examples of Karst landscape. In addition to rapidly building up its tourism infrastructure, the city is also preparing to become a leader in China's alternative energy revolution.

Last week Yunnan Power Investment New Energy Development Company announced that it will be the main investor in a Shilin-based solar energy photovoltaic power station which will be China's largest upon completion. Total initial investment in the station is expected to reach 3.7 billion (US$536 million).

The solar energy base will feature an installed generation capacity of 66 megawatts and will cover an area of 173 hectares. It will be connected to the provincial power grid for consumption by Yunnan residents and businesses. Construction on the facility will begin in October of this year and is projected to be completed in 2009.

Yunnan's high altitude, bright sun and clear skies make it one of the ideal locations for solar power facilities, which are being promoted by China's central government.

In October 2007 the government of Dali prefecture announced that it would cooperate with Yuanchang High Technology Group to build a US$500 million solar base, the largest non-crystal silicon thin-film solar cell power project in Asia.

In June 2007, Kunming was named China's 'Solar City' by the Worldwatch Institute - mainly based upon the prevalence of solar-powered water heaters throughout the city. It is estimated that half of the city's population uses solar water heaters.

Yunnan Normal University in Kunming is also home to the Solar Energy Research Instititute, which was founded in 1971 and plays an important role in China's solar technology research and development.

Image: tianshannet.com

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