Shanghai metro group to increase solar energy capabilities

Shanghai Shentong Metro Group will equip more of its garages with rooftop solar panels in the next five years to provide more clean energy for its operations, according to a manager of the group's new energy company.

"The group started building solar plants since 2013 and the process has been accelerated in the past two years. The group also founded Shanghai Metro New Energy Co last year," said Gao Jun, manager of the solar plant project at Longyang Road metro station.

"The company plans to build new rooftop solar plants with a total electricity generation capacity of 30 to 50 megawatts in the next five years," he said.

More than 4 million kilowatt-hours of electricity was generated in the past year by the solar panels installed on the roof of the metro depot at Longyang Road station in Shanghai. This amount of energy can allow an eight-cabin metro train to run 200,000 kilometers.

Covering 50,000 square meters on the roof of the garage, the solar plant was the second biggest of the metro group's 10 existing rooftop solar plants. This particular plant has been in use since the end of 2019.

Yan Jianfeng, senior expert of smart photovoltaic at Huawei, said the Longyang Road solar plant has been equipped with smart solar inverters by Huawei, which can automatically detect damages and improve the plant's efficiency.

Huawei has also provided smart solar plant solutions to Beijing Daxing International Airport and the Xiongan high-speed railway station in Hebei province.