The annual solar power generation at PetroChina Tarim Oilfield, China's third-largest onshore oil and gas field, has surpassed 2 billion kWh as of Sunday.

To date, Tarim Oilfield has completed five centralized solar power projects with a total installed capacity of 2.6 million kilowatts. There are also 239 distributed photovoltaic projects at production stations and individual oil and gas wells, which accumulated 63,000 kilowatts.

"Based on the national residential electricity consumption in 2024, the 2 billion kWh of green electricity generated here can meet the annual electricity needs of more than 1.8 million people," said Liang Yulei, head of the new energy department at Tarim Oilfield. He noted that the green electricity output is equivalent to replacing 600,000 tonnes of standard coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 1.07 million tonnes.

Liang explained that about 8 percent of the solar-generated electricity is used on-site for oil and gas production, and the remaining 92 percent is transmitted externally to the wider grid, reducing the oilfield's own energy consumption and emissions while also powering households.

Xinjiang, a region rich in solar and wind energy resources, has vigorously developed the new energy industry over the past few years.

Located in the Taklimakan Desert, the Tarim Oilfield is the country's third-largest onshore oil and gas field, the largest ultra-deep oil and gas production base and a primary gas source for China's west-to-east gas transmission project.