State Grid Zhejiang ensures power supply for spring tea harvest
As spring returns, the aroma of tea gradually fills the air. At Xunshan Tea Garden in Qingyuan county, Lishui, Zhejiang province, swathes of tea trees are sprouting new buds, successively entering the golden period of spring tea picking and processing. Staff from State Grid Zhejiang Electric Power visited the tea garden and processing workshops to conduct dedicated photovoltaic equipment inspections and provide power consumption consultations for spring tea roasting. Through reliable electricity supply, they are safeguarding spring tea production and helping tea enterprises expand their market reach while ensuring stable production and increased efficiency.
The State Grid team conducted careful examinations of the photovoltaic panels across the tea-covered hills. They provided on-site explanations of PV maintenance essentials and offered detailed recommendations for managing peak electricity consumption during the spring tea production season. They emphasized that bird droppings and fallen leaves covering the panel surfaces would directly impact power generation efficiency. During the rainy spring season, particular attention must be paid to insulation and drainage, with regular professional cleaning being crucial for ensuring a stable supply of clean energy.
[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
At the tea garden site, operators deployed drones to conduct thermal imaging inspections of the elevated PV arrays, accurately detecting hidden cracks and hot spots. Simultaneously, another team utilized high-pressure water jets and professional cleaning tools to perform deep cleaning of the panel surfaces. In real-time footage transmitted by the drones, the cleaned PV panels gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight, with power generation efficiency significantly enhanced.
"The power supply company not only helped us conduct a comprehensive health check of our PV equipment but also inspected our tea processing power consumption — they're truly looking out for our needs," said the person in charge of Xunshan Tea Garden. The garden has introduced fully electric automated tea roasting equipment this year, which demands higher voltage stability. With comprehensive technical support from the power company, the tea garden has achieved fully electrified operations throughout the entire process — from leaf fixation and rolling to drying — improving both tea quality and production efficiency.
As the critical period for spring tea picking and processing arrives, electrical safety directly affects the success of the harvest. Synchronized with the PV equipment inspections, State Grid Zhejiang organized technical teams to enter tea processing workshops, distribution rooms, and other key areas, launching specialized advisory services for spring tea roasting power consumption. They conducted comprehensive inspections of power supply lines, switchgear, leakage protection devices, and backup power sources, with particular attention paid to hazards such as line overloads, equipment overheating, and voltage fluctuations, ensuring no blind spots in inspection and no overnight delays in problem resolution.
State Grid Zhejiang is leveraging a dual-service approach that combines reliable power supply with dedicated customer support to continuously serve tea enterprises and farmers in their journey toward prosperity, safeguarding the local specialty industry during the spring tea season. Moving forward, it will continue focusing on the green transformation needs of agriculture, strengthening precise one-industry-one-policy services, expanding the coverage of clean energy across all agricultural production sectors, and contributing to China's dual carbon goals, boosting the high-quality green development of Lishui's mountainous regions.
