Brightness was finally brought to the last people in Qing Hai Province who remained off the grid. And with the completion of this project, China has achieved its goal of nationwide coverage of electricity.
While most of us have been enjoying the gifts of electricity, residents in some regions of Qinghai province in western China, have lived without it their whole lives.
Fortunately, this dark period is about to end.
A project aimed at extending electricity to the last remaining off-grid region, the Guoluo area of Qinghai province, has been completed.
"It's unbelievable to us. We couldn't have imagined access to electricity so soon due to the high altitude here," said a local resident.
With an average altitude of 4km and only 60 percent of sea-level oxygen content in the atmosphere, the harsh natural conditions in Guoluo have made each step toward gaining electricity a real challenge.
Further complicating things, Guoluo is located in the centre of a national conservation area in Qinghai province, where plants have to be strictly protected. Neither roads, nor cableways are allowed to built in the area.
So, these hordes of mules, crunching along the steep and slippery mountain paths, have become the most helpful porters in this massive project. They have helped carry supplies, materials and cables throughout the project.
"There is so much gravel, the grass is slippery, and it's very hard for my mule to travel. Two mules of mine fell to their deaths just a couple of days ago, and I have to constantly provide the horses with sufficient nutrition such as glucose and protein as the task for them is so energy-consuming," said Zeng Zaihong, mule-driver.
There have been 809 mules contributing to this power-grid construction project, with an annual death rate of 10 percent. Thanks to the mules, with the completion of the project, China has finally realized its remarkable goal of nationwide electricity coverage.
