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China nears finish of world's first flexible ultra-high-voltage power line

China nears finish of world's first flexible ultra-high-voltage power line

Built World

Inspections done on Fuchun River crossing of the 2,370-km Gansu-Zhejiang direct current project

7 days ago: Inspections completed for Fuchun River crossing section

Overview

Updated 7 days ago

Inspectors wrapped up checks on the Fuchun River crossing of China's Gansu-Zhejiang ultra-high voltage (UHV) power line on September 5. The milestone edges the 2,370-kilometer project closer to commissioning, making it the world's first UHV direct current (UHVDC) link to use flexible DC technology at both the sending and receiving ends.

The line will carry wind and solar power from Gansu's desert plains to Zhejiang's factories and data centers, delivering an estimated 36 billion kilowatt-hours of clean electricity each year. It's part of a national push to add 15 new UHVDC lines by 2030, raising total transmission capacity past 420 gigawatts, and completing a grid that already moves over 70% of China's inter-regional power.

Why it matters

How China's UHV grid expansion balances renewables against coal will shape the world's largest electricity system for decades.

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Key Indicators

2,370 km
Line length, Wuwei (Gansu) to Shaoxing (Zhejiang)
Spans six provinces and regions: Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Henan, Anhui, Zhejiang.
36 billion kWh
Annual clean electricity delivered to Zhejiang
Equivalent to cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 17 million tons per year.
15
New UHVDC lines planned by 2030
Would bring total operating transmission capacity to over 420 GW nationwide.
~20%
Renewable share of electricity on China's UHV lines
Wind and solar share has barely risen since 2021, according to Global Energy Monitor research.

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People Involved

JR
Jin Renyun
General manager of construction branch, State Grid Zhejiang Electric Power
Overseeing grid construction in Zhejiang
HM
He Mingfeng
Deputy general manager, State Grid Jiaxing Power Supply Company
Managing power supply for Jiaxing, Zhejiang

Organizations Involved

State Grid Corporation of China
State Grid Corporation of China
State-owned electric utility
Project operator and builder of the Gansu-Zhejiang UHVDC line

China's monopoly grid operator and the builder of record for the UHV network.
PowerChina
PowerChina
State-owned engineering and construction conglomerate
Design and construction contractor on Yu3 and Yu4 sections

Leads tower design and line construction across segments in Henan.

Timeline

September 2025 September 2026

4 events Latest: 7 days ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Inspections completed for Fuchun River crossing section

    Latest Quality assurance

    Inspectors sign off on the Fuchun River crossing section, confirming the stringing work meets technical standards ahead of energization.

  2. Yangtze River crossing north tower tops out at 196 m

    Construction

    After 69 days of work, the 196-meter north tower of the Yangtze River crossing reaches full height in Wuwei, Anhui, clearing a key obstacle on the route.

  3. State Grid completes Fuchun River crossing stringing

    Construction

    The Fuchun River-crossing stringing operation finishes in Hangzhou, a critical step for carrying the line over the waterway into Zhejiang's industrial core.

  4. Anhui section enters conductor stringing phase

    Construction

    Workers begin stringing conductors for the Gansu-Zhejiang line in Nanling County, Wuhu, moving the 2,370-km corridor into its final assembly stages.

Scenarios

1

Gansu-Zhejiang UHVDC enters full commercial operation

Likely Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: State Grid, Chinese energy media, Xinhua

The line is tracking ahead of schedule based on completed milestones: stringing on both major river crossings, tower erection, and now inspections. If the remaining segments hold pace through late 2026, State Grid energizes the line and it begins delivering its rated 36 billion kilowatt-hours annually to Zhejiang, with full commercial operation declared in 2027.

2

Delays push completion past 2027 summer peak

Possible Resolves by Q3 2027

Discussed by: Construction risk analysts, utilities press

The route crosses complex terrain in six provinces, including the Yangtze and Fuchun river crossings and mountainous sections in Henan and Anhui. Weather windows, tower erection, or stringing setbacks in any segment could push full operation into late 2027 or 2028, missing the summer demand peak the line was designed to relieve.

3

Renewables share of UHV electricity exceeds 25%

Uncertain Resolves by Q2 2028

Discussed by: Global Energy Monitor, Dialogue Earth, Greenpeace East Asia

Wind and solar currently provide about a fifth of the electricity UHV lines carry, a share that has barely moved since 2021. If policy shifts toward storage, flexible grid configurations, and market-based trading, renewables could push past 25% of UHV flow as new wind and solar megabases come online. Greenpeace analysts describe the current dynamic as 'dual coal lock-in'—coal expansion at both sending and receiving ends.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2003-2012

Three Gorges Dam and the original west-to-east grid (2003)

China's Three Gorges hydro project spawned a wave of eastward transmission lines carrying power from Hubei to the Yangtze River Delta and Guangdong. It was the first large-scale institutional test of moving bulk electricity across provincial borders.

Then

Proved long-distance electricity transport could ease eastern shortages and created the institutional template for interprovincial power trading.

Now

The corridor planning and grid architecture UHV lines now rely on grew directly from this era.

Why this matters now

Gansu-Zhejiang follows the same logic—generate where resources are, consume where people are—but swaps hydro for wind and solar, which introduces intermittency that the original baseload model never had to manage.

January 2009

China's first UHV line (2009)

China energized its first UHV transmission line, a 1,000-kilovolt alternating current link from Jindongnan (Shanxi) to Nanyang (Henan) to Jingmen (Hubei). It proved the country could move bulk power hundreds of kilometers at voltages no other utility had deployed commercially.

Then

Established China as the only country operating UHV at commercial scale and launched the national west-to-east transmission strategy.

Now

By end of 2025, China had commissioned 45 UHV lines totaling 52,300 kilometers, carrying over 70% of inter-regional power transmission capacity.

Why this matters now

The Gansu-Zhejiang line inherits this national buildout but adds a structural change: flexible DC technology at both ends, designed to handle the variability of wind and solar rather than steady baseload flow.

Sources

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CGTN Hangzhou News China Economic Net NetEase Wedoany Dialogue Earth Our China Story Bastille Post