Combined coal, wind power grid approved for national pilot program

China's first regional grid to successfully integrate both coal and wind energy sources could be adopted elsewhere, said top executives of the company that operates the grid in Huolinhe in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

The dual-power electricity grid is the brainchild of SPIC Mengdong Energy Group Co Ltd, a subsidiary of State Power Investment Corp, which is the largest electrolytic aluminium manufacturer in Northeast China.

SPIC Mengdong Energy Group has been working for the past three years in Huolinhe, where one of the five largest open mines in China is located, to supply part of Huolinhe's domestic and industrial energy needs, mostly electrolytic aluminium production.