Innovation

Inner Mongolia's solar power and wind power are the strongest in China. Also, Inner Mongolia is a piece of plain land, which allows any equipment needed to collect solar power and wind power to be installed. The hybrid of wind power and solar power system is practicable in Inner Mongolia because the solar power and the wind power are complementary. On a daily basis, during the daytime, the solar power is very strong, and during the night, the wind power becomes strong. From a yearly perspective, in summer, June to September, the solar power is the strongest, and in spring, fall, and winter, the wind power is the strongest. Based on this unique climate condition in Inner Mongolia, Inner Mongolia University and Inner Mongolia QingYu Tech. Co., Ltd. developed the “WinSolar” Power System, and the company has popularized this system into the rural area of Inner Mongolia.

The system has the following components: wind turbine built on a tower, PV array to collect solar energy, wind charge controller, PV charge controller, DC power center, battery bank, and inverter. And the system works as the following steps. Firstly, the wind turbine and the PV array collect wind power and solar power. Secondly, the wind charge controller and the PV charge controller transfer the natural power to electricity power in the DC power center, and the electricity power is stored in a battery bank. Finally, the inverter transfers the direct currency into alternative currency, so that the electricity is usable.

Inspiration

Mr. Xu said, "although poverty is still a big issue now in Inner Mongolia and development is the priority, we still want to be as sustainable as possible during the process of development." Mr. Xu's idea really inspired me that there is a way to get away from poverty while at the same time applying high technology solutions for sustainable development. We do have a chance to skip the traditional way of developing and jump into a more healthy development model.

Overall impact

The "WinSolar" system provides clean and affordable electricity to rural area in Inner Mongolia. Not only has it generated profit from this project, but the company has also improved people's quality of life in the region, while maintaining the protection of the grassland and other natural resources.

Business benefit

The company gains a favorable profit per system installation, which also enables the company to improve and update the system. The professional technology and the expertise in the company have gained a positive reputation in the local area.

Social and environmental benefit

The system provides 3.8 to 4.2 kw/h daily, which is almost enough to satisfy the usage of one house in the rural area. The system costs around $2,000 and has a useful life of around 30 years, which means it only costs $0.18 per day. It is much lower than the daily cost using a traditional power generating system. And the government doesn't need to build electricity grid here either, which saves governmental financial expense.

In addition, the implementation of this system completely replaces the need of fossil fuels, and it provides a better protection for the regional natural resources.

Interview

Yueqing Xu, CEO