The Triple-Benefit Potential of Desert Wind Farms in China: Energy, Resource Complementarity, and Climate Effect

The deserts of Northwest China are one of the most wind energy resource rich area in the country, and are characterized by concentrated solar energy and fragile ecosystems. Thus, efforts to harvest wind energy for carbon neutrality goals face vital challenges, such as determining where to site wind farms with consideration of wind energy output, grid stability, and ecological impacts. Existing studies predominantly focus on power generation and economic aspects, and few have proposed a multidimensional framework that simultaneously optimizes energy generation, wind-solar complementarity for grid integration, and climate impacts. To address this gap, we develop an assessment framework that integrates the Weather Research and Forecasting model, geostationary satellite observations, and machine learning models. Utilizing our framework, we identified an optimal area of 219,000 km2 that can generate 3,165 TWh of electricity annually. This optimal area also has high wind-solar complementarity (correlation coefficient: −0.81) and can reduce the diurnal land surface temperature range by 0.5°C. Our framework may provide benefits for all three objectives: providing considerable electricity, strengthening the stability of the grid, and helping reduce the temperature range. Our analysis reveals spatial heterogeneity with distinct characteristics: Inner Mongolia excels in terms of energy economic benefits, while the wind farms on the Tibetan Plateau offer stronger climatic effects. This triple benefit framework advances beyond a single-objective siting framework and provides a practical framework for sustainable energy planning under multiple constraints.