China's first 1 GW clean energy project combining photovoltaic power, solar-thermal storage and electric heating has been connected to the grid in Gonghe county, Hainan prefecture, Qinghai province, developer PowerChina said.

The project, with a total installed capacity of 1 GW, comprises a 900 MW photovoltaic plant and a 100 MW molten salt tower solar-thermal plant.

The solar-thermal section features a 219-meter receiver tower and 10,310 pentagonal heliostats with a total light-collecting area of about 500,000 square meters. The photovoltaic section has 1.90 million modules installed. The project is a key part of China's second batch of large-scale wind and solar bases.

PowerChina's renewable energy unit is investing in and operating the project, with its Northwest Institute serving as EPC contractor.

The project uses molten salt thermal storage to store excess solar energy generated during the day and deliver stable power at night and on cloudy or rainy days. It has completed full-capacity operation, setting an industry record for a solar-thermal plant achieving full-capacity operation upon grid connection.

The project is expected to generate an average of 2.2 TWh of on-grid electricity annually, saving about 690,000 tonnes of standard coal and cutting carbon dioxide emissions by about 2.07 million tonnes per year. It will help absorb peak-time electricity for thermal storage and improve the local grid's peak-shaving capacity and renewable energy consumption.

The photovoltaic array uses high-low mounting brackets to balance power generation with ecological protection, preserving native grassland beneath the panels and enabling a "power generation above, sheep grazing below" model.

The project also aims to boost the plateau county economy and support rural revitalization in the upper Yellow River region, while demonstrating a scalable solar-plus-thermal storage pathway for large wind and solar bases in desert and gobi areas.