State Grid employees check solar power panels in the Tibet autonomous region. [Photo by SONG WEIXING/FOR CHINA DAILY]

The annual solar radiation volume in the Tibet autonomous region is equivalent to 240 billion tons of standard coal, according to data from the latest scientific expedition on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

The findings from the second comprehensive scientific expedition on the plateau, reported by China Meteorology News, showed the capacity of photovoltaic power generation in Tibet's areas below an altitude of 5,000 meters is 12 billion kilowatts, with the total size of regional areas that have the potential to develop solar energy exceeding 340,000 square kilometers.

High-quality PV power generation exploitation is mainly concentrated in the east central area of Shigatse city, the northwestern area of Lhokha city, the south central area of regional capital Lhasa and the western area of Ngari prefecture.

Shen Yanbo, a senior engineer with the China Meteorological Administration, said Tibet has abundant water, sun, wind and geothermal energy resources.

"It is essential to properly develop and use these clean energy resources in the region, and efforts to accelerate research on the complementary aspects of water, wind and solar energy is expected to play a lead role in China's goal of achieving carbon peak and neutrality," Shen was quoted as saying by the China Meteorology News.

Tibet is enriched with solar energy resources for development and utilization, equivalent to that in the Sahara desert and equatorial regions.

By the end of last year, clean energy accounted for nearly 90 percent of power generation in Tibet. The region plans to provide 6.1 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to 11 provinces and cities within the next three years.

Li Zechun, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said the comprehensive analysis of the region's solar energy resources is of strong practical value and innovative significance.

This achievement will provide favorable support for the high-quality development of solar energy development and utilization in Tibet, and it has laid a solid foundation for the accurate planning and scientific layout of clean energy development in the region, Li told China Meteorology News.