China Launches Electrification Strategy for Rural AreasChina is turning to small hydropower stations to deliver electricity to more rural households.Rural electrification (RE) means a majority of rural residents in a country use electricity basically for lighting and home appliances. The ambitious RE strategy calls for 600 primary RE counties to be put in place by the end of this year, said Wang Shucheng, minister of Water Resources. China is expected to build 400 medium-stage RE counties by 2005 and another 400 by 2010, Wang said. The Ministry of Water Resources is responsible for promoting and supervising the RE undertakings. China's total exploitable hydropower potential is estimated to be about 378 million kilowatts, ranking it the largest in the world. More than 4,300 small hydropower stations have been completed, with a total installed capacity of 23 million kw. The small hydropower stations produce about 72 billion kw hours annually, supplying electricity for one-third of the country's counties and one-fourth of its total population, said Tian Shen, deputy director of hydropower development bureau with the Ministry of Water Resources. But only 29 percent of China's hydropower resources have been exploited, far less than in some developed countries and around 75 million rural people have still no access to power. It is truly necessary to use more small hydropower stations to achieve sustainable development in rural areas. |
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