https://j.people.com.cn/n3/2026/0924/c95952-20503513.html

According to an announcement by Xinjiang Wind Power National Innovation Technology Co., Ltd., a 360-meter-tall wind observation tower—part of an 800-megawatt experimental wind farm—has been completed and put into operation in Mulei County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It now stands as the tallest wind observation tower in the global wind power industry. This marks a new milestone for China in the fields of high-altitude wind observation and the technical validation of wind power standards, as reported by *Science and Technology Daily*.

Mulei County, where the tower is located, sits at the heart of Xinjiang’s ten major wind energy zones and five major solar energy zones. It is a designated area for the large-scale wind and solar power bases—specifically those located in desert, Gobi, and wasteland regions—outlined in the “14th Five-Year Plan for Renewable Energy Development (2021–2025).” In recent years, the county has prioritized the development of the new energy industry, and in 2025, it completed Xinjiang’s first county-level new energy base with a capacity exceeding 10 gigawatts (10,000 megawatts) for both wind and solar power.

According to experts, the wind observation tower enables the incremental measurement of parameters such as wind speed, wind direction, wind shear, turbulence intensity, and atmospheric stability at various altitudes. The actual measured data supports research into high-altitude wind energy and provides an empirical basis for validating the design of larger-scale wind power facilities and the development of new power systems.

Photo: The 360-meter-tall wind observation tower of the 800-megawatt experimental wind farm, towering over the Gobi Desert. Photo by Chang Yiyi.