By Hayk Sahakyan and Narek Khachatryan One of the main attractions of China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region is the city of Ordos, with a population of about 2.5 million, which occupies a huge area of about 87,000 square kilometers.
It is noteworthy that this huge city was built quite recently, in just 12 years. The construction of the city began from scratch in 2004 and was generally completed in 2016, although large-scale construction work is still underway in the city.
This city is one of the largest coal and natural gas mining centers in China, which in turn contributed to the construction boom here, and later to the socioeconomic development and living conditions of the newly created city. In record short time, a vast network of roads, residential areas, government buildings, schools, hospitals, commercial areas, parks, water infrastructure, and cultural institutions have been built here to meet the needs of the local population.
Roads, railways, airports, and power transmission infrastructure connect the mines and industrial centers in Ordos with the rest of China. One of the main attractions of Ordos is the Musical Singing Fountain, which is the main place of entertainment for the city’s population in the evenings.
The fountain complex, equipped with the latest technological solutions, consists of one main fountain and about 3,000 auxiliary fountains, the lighting of which is provided by about 1,700 underwater lights. The main jet of this singing fountain can reach up to 230 meters. For comparison, the jet of the famous Dubai Fountain in the UAE can reach a much lower height—up to 150 meters. Inner Mongolia is one of the regions of strategic importance and political significance for China.
Beijing’s approach to the development of the country, resource extraction, urban development, as well as the integration of ethnic minorities, is perhaps most evident here. The Inner Mongolia autonomous region stretches in northern China, bordering Mongolia and Russia.
It has a population of about 24 million and is one of China’s main sources of energy and natural resources, where wind and solar power production have also been given a big boost in recent years.