Cold-weather testing industry thrives in Mohe, China's northernmost city

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

By Guo Xiaolong, People's Daily

Leveraging its unique natural environment, Mohe has been actively developing the cold-weather testing industry, turning its "cold resources" into a burgeoning "hot economy."

Currently, six testing companies are operating in the city, conducting tests on over 1,200 vehicles and 23,000 pieces of testing categories every year, including new materials, electronic components, and vehicle clothing and films.

In Beiji village, or "North Pole village," a bustling tourist destination in Mohe, there is a testing base run by Heilongjiang Red Valley Automotive Test Co., Ltd., a leading player in the local automotive testing sector. Here, a new energy vehicle (NEV) was racing around a circular ice track, stirring up bursts of snow as it drifted through sharp turns.

Not far away, Cao Shuwen, a test engineer from an automobile company in Wuhan, central China's Hubei province, was troubleshooting issues with a test driver. In 2022, Cao began to conduct cold-weather testing in Mohe. This winter, his team arrived in the city once again to test 140 automobiles of 13 different models in extreme cold weather.

"Extreme cold testing is a critical step before a new vehicle hits the market," Cao explained.

With the rapid development of NEVs, automakers must rigorously evaluate battery range, charging speeds, and the performance of electric motors, battery packs, and electronic control systems in extremely low temperatures, Cao said.

The prolonged cold environment, lasting for five months each year, provides an extended period of cold-weather testing, making Mohe a popular destination for car manufacturers.

"The city not only provides excellent testing tracks and facilities, but pays close attention to the needs of car companies. Before constructing, upgrading, or maintaining test tracks each year, local authorities will gather opinions and suggestions from automakers to ensure the facilities meet their needs," said Cao, who was very satisfied with the services here.

The winter testing industry has become a new source of growth in the city. Last winter, 1,500 test engineers from 39 automakers flocked to the city, generating more than 36 million yuan ($4.93 million) in indirect revenue for local businesses, including fuel stations, restaurants, hotels, transportation services, and retail stores.

"Just take a walk down the street. You'll see cars from every major brand!" said Mr. Li, a restaurant owner in Beiji village. His restaurant was packed with engineers speaking in different Chinese regional accents. "Even though it's freezing outside, our business is red-hot!" Li said cheerfully.

Cold-weather solar panel testing

When exposed to extreme cold conditions, solar panels face challenges such as low temperatures, large temperature differences between day and night, heavy snow loads, and strong winds.

To better understand how these extreme weather conditions affect solar power generation, China Testing & Certification International Group Co., Ltd. (CTC) established a cold-weather testing park in Mohe - the first comprehensive outdoor cold testing site in China's photovoltaic industry that integrates offices, testing, research, and storage facilities. As of Dec. 2024, the park had attracted over 60 companies, testing more than 80 different photovoltaic models.

According to Tang Ning, an administrative manager at CTC's Mohe branch, the park was equipped with specialized software to remotely monitor key performance indicators of each solar panel, including power generation data, voltage, current, and efficiency levels.

"Unlike simulated cold chambers, real-world cold-weather testing in Mohe provides a more authentic assessment by exposing solar panels to natural conditions like heavy snow loads, strong winds, and fluctuating temperatures, which can reveal material degradation, aging, and failure of electrical components," said an executive of a photovoltaic company.

The company joined the testing park during its early stage and has already begun a one-year extreme cold exposure study. "We're preparing to expand into high-latitude markets in Norway and Iceland, and we need a field test like this. Mohe offers us a cost-effective way to validate our products in real extreme-cold conditions," said the executive.

Cold-weather air conditioner heating pump testing

Early on a snowy morning, as the first rays of sunlight peeked over the horizon, Li Xiaohui, a member of the heat pump performance testing project of Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) was already on his way to the test site.

In the air-conditioning industry, there's a saying: "Cooling is standard, but heating is the real challenge."

The heating performance of air conditioners in extreme cold weather is a crucial aspect of their overall efficiency. At the Mohe test site, the HIT team aimed to evaluate the cold resistance of air conditioner components, long-term operational stability, and energy consumption under extreme cold conditions.

"Currently, there is no official industry standard for cold-weather heat pump testing in China," said professor Wu Jian, head of the project from HIT. "Our goal is to collaborate with leading Chinese universities in heat pump research to establish both national and international standards."

Looking ahead, Wu's team plans to extend their testing to more extreme conditions such as freezing rain and blizzards to develop more resilient heating solutions, contributing to China's efforts in clean energy and sustainable heating.