A 250-acre solar farm shaped like a panda bear went online in China last week, generating 50 megawatts of power to the grid, not to mention a significant buzz that the project's backers hope will inspire future renewable energy projects in the developing world.
The solar farm, near the northern city of Datong, is the brainchild of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Hong-Kong based Panda Green Energy. Construction began last fall and the first phase was connected to the power grid of Panda Green's parent company, China Merchants New Energy, on June 29.
Once it reaches full capacity, the Datong panda power station will deliver 100 megawatts of power, according to Panda Green. After 25 years of operation, the company says it will have produced 3.2 billion kWh of electricity, equivalent to saving 1.056 million tons of coal or reducing 2.74 million tons of carbon dioxide.
The UNDP's mission is the eradication of poverty, but it has in recent years become one of the UN's principal fronts for environmentally friendly initiatives. It intends to use the giant panda as an educational tool; it will host summer camps for Chinese children, who will "gain a deeper understanding of green energies and first-hand experience of environmental protection," according to a UNDP statement.
The UNDP will also partner with Panda Green and China Merchants New Energy to host a design challenge for renewable energy technologies open to Chinese youth, as part of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.
"Designing the plant in the shape of a panda could inspire young people and get them interested in the applications of solar power," Panda Green's CEO Li Yuan told the state-owned Xinhua news agency, according to Mashable. Panda Green is planning to build more panda-shaped solar plants around the world, including in Fiji and the Philippines, Mashable reports.