Beijing, Apr 17 (IANS): A solar photovoltaic power generation base is being built in the second largest city in Tibet to ease winter power shortage by harnessing the ample amount of sunshine received by the area.

The 30-megawatt solar power generation base is being built in Xigaze city. The plant is the first phase of a massive photovoltaic project.

Two other solar photovoltaic generation projects are under construction at the same area, including a 60-megawatt project and a 10-megawatt photovoltaic generation station.

Photovoltaic power generation is a method of generating electric power by converting solar radiation into direct electricity by using semiconductors.

Tibet has abundant solar energy resources, with an average of 3,000 hours of solar radiation annually.

Xigaze city, with an average 3,183 hours of annual solar radiation and over four square km of usable wasteland, is an ideal location for building solar battery arrays, officials said.

Over the past 60 years, Tibet has stepped up the exploitation of its clean energy resources, hoping to protect the ecology of the plateau while seeking economic growth.

Tibet's regional government has estimated that solar power helped save at least 162,800 tonnes of coal equivalent in 2010.