China Huaneng Group, the nation's largest electricity producer, has set a sales revenue target of 100 billion yuan this year.

The company plans to produce 325.1 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2007, with new installed capacity reaching 10,000 megawatts.

Last year the company's 1,000-megawatt ultra-supercritical coal-fired generating units, the first of their kind in China, went into commercial use.

The units, which use advanced coal-fired technology, are at Huaneng Yuhuan Power Plant, which is in East China's Zhejiang Province. The first phase of the Yuhuan project involves two 1,000-megawatt generating units, with an investment of 9.6 billion yuan.

"The operation of the 1,000-megawatt ultra-supercritical coal-fired power generating units is a milestone in China's electricity industry. The technology, which is more energy-saving and environmentally friendly, is the most advanced coal-fired power generating technology in the world," said Li Xiaopeng, the company's president.

Huaneng's sales revenue for 2006 was 84.5 billion yuan, up 14.8 percent from 2005. The company produced 282.04 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity last year, an increase of 10 percent from 2005.

As the world's fastest growing major economy and the second-biggest energy consumer, China's power majors have made substantial investments to boost capacity.

China's total installed electricity-generating capacity surpassed 622 gigawatts in 2006, up 20.3 percent from 2005.

"The electricity industry has seen quick development in the past years, but the proportion of coal-fired power plants also increased," said Wang Yeping, vice-chairman of the State Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Coal-fired power plants have accounted for over 77 percent of the nation's total installed generating capacity, said Wang, adding that China will accelerate efforts to close small coal-fired units with outdated technology that use excessive energy.

The nation is also trying to adjust its power mix, hoping that clean energy such as hydropower and nuclear power will make up 35 percent of the total electricity supply in 2010.

(China Daily February 2, 2007)