China Three Gorges Corp, the builder and operator of the world's biggest hydroelectric power project, the Three Gorges Dam, announced on Feb 24 the commencement of 25 new energy projects with a total investment of 58 billion yuan ($8.25 billion).

With a total installed capacity reaching 3.92 million kilowatts, the projects scattered over 14 provinces and regions, including Guangdong, Jiangsu, Fujian, Hebei provinces and the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, are expected to create 17,000 jobs for locals, it said.

The company said these new projects are expected to help optimize local industrial structure, and promote high quality economic and social development while ensuring the orderly resumption of work and production nationwide.

"The commencement of construction is a clear indication of market demand despite the virus outbreak," said Wang Ziyue, analyst with China Wind Research at research firm BloombergNEF.

"It encourages suppliers to resume and ramp up production."

As enterprises in China are already expanding their production capabilities, the large ones are ahead of small and medium-sized companies in resuming work after an extended Spring Festival holiday, according to the National Development and Reform Commission. More than 70 percent of major industrial companies in Jiangsu, Shandong, Fujian, Liaoning, Guangdong and Jiangxi provinces have restarted production, and Jiangsu reported it reached 90 percent, said the country's top economic regulator.

The offshore wind projects in Yangjiang, Guangdong province, and Rudong in Jiangsu province are the largest of the 25 new projects.

With a total investment of 42.4 billion yuan and 414 large domestically manufactured wind turbines, the two projects will provide 7.2 billion kilowatts of energy annually and more than 4,000 jobs, and reach their design capacity as of 2021, said the company.

The company has also donated 157 million yuan ($22.4 million) so far to assist the epidemic prevention and control efforts, it said.