China Builds World’s Largest Solar Farm on Tibetan Plateau: 162 Square Miles: Thinner Atmosphere at 10,000 Foot Elevation Yields Better Panel Efficiency

   

     The Talatan Solar Park in China covers 162 square miles and is now the biggest solar farm in the world. It is located in the alpine desert of the Tibetan Plateau at around 10,000 feet above sea level in Gonghe County in Qinghai Province, China. That part of the plateau also hosts wind turbines and hydropower dams. The power is delivered long distances, up to 1,000 miles, via high-voltage power lines. The panels cover an area seven times that of Manhattan, according to the article in the New York Times by Keith Bradsher. Nearby wind turbines capture night breezes to help balance the lack of solar output at night, and hydropower plants provide some baseload power.

     China already leads the world in solar and renewables output, and President Xi recently pledged to increase renewable energy sixfold. China also continues to function as the world’s biggest supplier of renewable energy components to other countries. China is also building out the world’s largest network of electric trains and EVs. Another goal for the country is to lessen its dependence on foreign countries, including the U.S., for oil, natural gas, and coal. China is also building five new hydropower dams on the Yarlung Tsangpo River in southern Tibet. India is worried that these dams will keep the needed water volumes from reaching it.

     The Tibetan Plateau is both flat and of high elevation, which makes it ideal to take advantage of the benefits of high-altitude solar. The cold air in the region also helps improve solar panel efficiency. Bradsher writes:

“Qinghai’s Talatan solar project dwarfs these. It has a capacity of 16,930 megawatts of power, which could run every household in Chicago. It is still expanding, adding panels with a target of growing to 10 times the area of Manhattan in three years. Another 4,700 megawatts of wind energy and 7,380 megawatts of hydroelectric dams are nearby.”

     They are also building smaller solar farms in mountain valleys in even higher elevation Tibetan sites, with one 150 MW solar farm near the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, at 17,000 ft elevation. The panels are high enough above the ground that sheep can graze under them, although the land is sandy and arid with sparse vegetation. Wind power does not work as well in the thin air at higher elevations, but the wind speeds are higher, which helps reduce that effect. At night, along with the wind, there is assistance from Shaanxi coal plants. The new hydro plants will likely replace those coal plants for this region.

     Two nearby hydroelectric projects are being built. The idea is to use excess solar generation to pump water uphill and harness it at night when the solar is offline. Industries are planned in the region to take advantage of the inexpensive power. One is a facility for turning quartzite from mines into polysilicon to make solar panels. AI Data centers are also planned for the area. The data centers here are expected to use 40% less energy due to no need for air conditioning compared to warmer places in China. He notes that:

“Air warmed by the data centers’ computer servers is circulated through underground pipes to heat other buildings in Yushu and Guoluo, replacing coal-fired boilers.”

     Power is moved on China’s modern grid with fiber-optic cables.

     It is being acknowledged more and more that China is on an infrastructure buildout binge, trying to engineer the world as much as it can. The locals in Tibet likely dissent, preferring their more traditional, isolated culture to one that has more encounters with the bustling world of building big energy and data infrastructure projects.

  

References:

 

Why China Built 162 Square Miles of Solar Panels on the World’s Highest Plateau. Keith Bradsher, New York Times. October 30, 2025. Why China Built 162 Square Miles of Solar Panels on the World’s Highest Plateau - The New York Times

China unveils largest facility of its kind on 10,000-foot plateau — here's what we know. Michelle Rochniak, The Cool Down, November 10, 2025. China unveils largest facility of its kind on 10,000-foot plateau — here's what we know