Sany Group, one of China's largest heavy-construction equipment manufacturers, plans to install 80- to 100-megawatts of distributed solar-energy capacity in the first half of this year, as it accelerates its drive into the photovoltaic industry, according to a top executive of the group.

Cheng Weihua, head of the company's photovoltaic equipment division, told China Daily the company now views the increased use of clean energy as inevitable, and that solar energy particularly, with its incomparable accessibility, has become a major part of Sany's product portfolio.

Sany has already incorporated 3.8 mW of distributed photovoltaic power capacity into the regional grid in the Nankou Industrial Park, its manufacturing base in Beijing.