TUNIS, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Chinese companies on Wednesday broke ground on a 100-megawatt photovoltaic power station in central Tunisia's Kairouan Province, the largest photovoltaic power plant currently under construction in Tunisia. The commencement of the project represents a major step for Tunisia to implement energy diversification and fulfill its energy transformation strategy, Wael Chouchane, the secretary of state to the Tunisian minister of industry, mines and energy and in charge of the energy transition, told Xinhua. China plays a leading role in the global renewable energy sector, and the Tunisian side has great confidence in the ability of Chinese companies to carry out this project, said Chouchane, adding that the Tunisian side could also benefit from the cooperation with Chinese companies regarding talent training and technology. The power station is being constructed by a consortium comprising China Energy Engineering Group Tianjin Electric Power Construction Co., Ltd (Energy China TEPC) and Northwest Electric Power Design Institute Co., Ltd (NWEPDI) of China Power Engineering Consulting Group. Xu Zhiyong, a project director from Energy China TEPC, told Xinhua that this project has the potential to cultivate a significant number of skilled professionals in the new energy industry for Tunisia. The power station is designed to operate for 25 years and generate 5.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity, said Wang Wenhai, another director of the project from NWEPDI.
