From 2010, Beijing will invest at least CNY200 million each year in six major solar power projects.
These investments are outlined in "Guideline on Accelerating the Development and Utilization of Solar Power in Beijing" which was jointly released by the Beijing Municipal Development and Reform Commission, the Beijing Municipal House Construction Commission, and three other agencies.
The six projects are a 20,000-kilowatt photovoltaic rooftop project, a 50,000-kilowatt solar energy demonstration power plant project, a solar power campus project, a solar power hot water project, a solar power agriculture project, and a solar power night landscape project.
It is expected that the policy support will help drive a total of CNY6.5 billion social investment in three years, and with the policy in place, the total area covered by solar power heating systems in the city will reach seven million square meters, solar power generation system will reach 70 megawatts in capacities and the value of solar power output will be over CNY20 billion. Each year solar power will replace the use of about 900,000 tons of coal, which is an increased saving of about 20% over that of 2008, and carbon dioxide emissions will be reduced by 1.96 million tons, sulfur dioxide emissions will be cut by 59,000 tons and emissions of nitrogen oxides will go down by 32,000 tons.
