(TibetanReview.net, Apr29’26) – China has begun on Apr 28 the construction of the Tibet section of an ultra-high-voltage power transmission that will transmit “clean energy” from the Chinese ruled Himalayan territory all the way to its southern coastal province of Guangdong and beyond. Tibet has become China’s rising power generation hub in recent years, propelled by the nation’s rapidly evolving clean energy technologies, noted China’s official Xinhua news agency Apr 28.
But unfortunately, China’s mammoth wind, solar, and, especially, hydropower projects across Tibet remain highly controversial for their environmental devastation, utter disregard for the socio-economic future of the local Tibetans, brutal repression and persecution of those who protest any such violations, and for their massive imports of Chinese labourers and technicians that adversely affect the demographic profile of the region.
Construction of the Xizang section of the Xizang-Guangdong ultra-high-voltage (UHV) power transmission line was kicked off Tuesday (Apr 28) in the city of Qamdo (Tibetan: Chamdo) in Xizang Autonomous Region (TAR), the report said, using the Sinicized name “Xizang” for “Tibet”.
The report said the line will stretch over a distance of 2,681 km to supply the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area with power, thanks to TAR’s vast clean energy capacity.
The report said that with a total investment of 53.2 billion yuan (about $7.76 billion) and a transmission capacity of 10 million kW, this transmission project will serve as a major energy artery linking TAR and south China’s Guangdong via Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The TAR section is scheduled to achieve power transmission capacity by 2028 and become fully operational in 2029. It will include two UHV transmission lines totalling 301.7 km at elevations ranging from 1,900 metres to 4,800 metres, and two converter stations with capacities of 8 million kW and 5 million kW, respectively, the report said.
The State Grid Xizang Electric Power Co. has said that once completed, the project will supply 43 billion kWh of clean electricity annually from TAR to the Greater Bay Area, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 33 million tonnes.
The report said that by the end of 2025, total installed power capacity in the TAR, including both completed and under-construction projects, had exceeded 33 million kW, while the installed capacity of completed projects alone had surpassed 13 million kW.
Construction of the Guangdong section of the project was stated to have started in Sep 2025.
The Greater Bay Area, formed in 2017, is a high-level strategic city cluster in southern China consisting of 9 Guangdong cities (Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan, Huizhou, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, Zhaoqing) and the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao.