The CGN New Energy Jixilugu DC 490MW Hybrid Project (100MW CT CSP) — the world's highest-latitude CSP plant and the first in Northeast China, with Cosin Solar serving as its core builder — has rapidly achieved full-load operation, with single-day generation exceeding one million kWh.

The project was grid-connected on June 29, 2026. Its first month brought difficult weather: just four sunny days in July, alongside 14 rainy days and 13 cloudy days. Total DNI for the month was only 118.95 kWh/m².

Despite this, the concentrating solar field and receiver system operated for 17 days, achieving a heat collection attainment rate of 99.74%. The result came from Cosin Solar's Intelligent Operation Solution for CSP Plants, which uses fully automated intelligent control. The system improved solar resource utilization and operational stability, addressing a key challenge: the difficulty of running CSP plants under manual control.

On August 11, the plant completed a 77.5-hour continuous operation and full-load performance test. The unit started on August 8 and ran stably through August 11, generating 2.92 million kWh. On August 9, single-day output reached 1.064 million kWh — a new record since commissioning.

Cosin Solar supplied the technical solution, integrated equipment, and commissioning and operation guidance for the concentrating solar field and receiver system. The project sits at 45.36°N in a severe cold zone, where temperatures drop to -37.3°C and wind speeds reach Level 9. Cosin Solar's high-precision intelligent heliostats are built to withstand these extremes. A vision-based automatic calibration system maintains concentration accuracy. After grid connection, the plant quickly reached full load, validating the environmental adaptability and operational reliability of Cosin Solar's system.

Project Overview

The project is one of China's first batch of desert-gobi-wasteland "wind, solar, thermal, storage" integrated demonstration projects. It uses a molten salt tower route, with 100 MW installed capacity and 8 hours of thermal energy storage. The heliostat field has 19,667 high-precision heliostats covering approximately 590,000 m².

Once fully operational, the plant is expected to generate 180 million kWh annually — saving about 54,000 tons of standard coal and cutting CO₂ emissions by about 139,000 tons. The project fills a gap in tower CSP in Northeast China and provides a model for integrated new energy projects in severe cold desert-gobi-wasteland regions and for large-scale CSP deployment.