Northwestern China’s Qinghai province is surging toward a new record: coverage of the region's full electricity consumption by renewable energy for seven consecutive days, set to occur this week.

During a 168-hour period lasting from June 17 to 24, 78.3 percent of Qinghai’s electricity demand, estimated to reach 175 million kWh per day, will be met by hydro power, while the remaining 21.7 percent will be met by solar and other new-energy resources, according to Qinghai Electric Power Company, an affiliate of the State Grid Corporation.

Solar power has been expanding aggressively in the hydroelectricity-rich Qinghai in recent years. Since the beginning of the 12th Five-Year Plan period in 2011, the province has witnessed annual solar growth of 58 percent when measured by installed capacity. Solar power, ranking behind hydro power, has been the second largest energy source for Qinghai.

Portugal achieved its own zero emissions landmark last year in a 107-hour run, during which the entire country was powered by renewable energy.

“This is the first test in China and it is very meaningful to China’s green growth transformation,” said Quan Shengming, general manager of Qinghai Electric Power Company. If everything proceeds smoothly, Qinghai will beat Portugal's impressive record.

In the long run, Qinghai plans to increase its renewable installed capacity to 61 million kW by 2025, and then provide as much as 11 billion kWh of electricity to central and eastern provinces every year - equivalent to the generation capacity of 50 million tons of raw coal.