Tibet's power grid has not been connected with the mainland main power grid, which leads to the serious power shortage in Tibet especially in winter, and the "electricity insularity" situation is expected to end in 2010.We learned that the State Development and Reform Commission recently launched a project to build a network to transmit electricity to Tibet or a Qinghai-Tibet power line.

By the initial design of State Grid Corporation of China: transmission line starts east from Golmud in Qinghai,and extends westward to Lhasa in Tibet, with a total length of about 1,100 kilometers, generally retracing the route of the Qinghai-Tibet railway line. This line adopts a standard of 500-kilovolt in direct currents, and following the first phase of construction, it will be able to provide annual power supply of 6.5 billion kwh. This will be the world's first plateau transmission line at an altitude of 5,000 meters above sea level.

Upon the completion of the Qinghai-Tibet power line, thermal power of five northwestern provinces can be transmitted to Tibet to fully meet the demand for electricity applied to the local economic development before 2020. Qinghai-Tibet power transmission line is expected to start operation in 2010. At present, Laohuzui Hydropower Station and Xueka Hydropower Station on the main stream of Ba River in Tibet are under quickening construction. Laohuzui Hydropower Station is so far the hydropower station with the largest unit capacity in Tibet, and Xueka Hydropower Station is projected to be the sixth cascade power plants down the lower sections of the Basong Lake. The two hydropower projects are of great significance to ease the power strains on supply and demand in the central region of Tibet.