Electricity Empowers Xinyu Xia Cloth, Weaving a New Future for “Chinese Grass”

From May 1 to 4, the 2nd Jiangxi Culture and Tourism Industry Expo & Trade Fair was held in Nanchang. Under the theme “Romantic Qixi Land · City of Tiangong Kaiwu,” the Xinyu Pavilion showcased Xia cloth embroidery, a national intangible cultural heritage item, along with woven cultural and creative products and modern ramie textile products.
In June 2025, the dance drama Tiangong Kaiwu was staged at the United Nations Headquarters. The dancers wore costumes made from “Jiangxi ramie,” bringing this “Chinese grass” to a global audience. Xinyu Xia cloth is made from high-quality local ramie and woven by hand using traditional techniques. It is breathable, moisture-absorbent, and antibacterial.
Under the traditional hand-weaving model, a weaver could produce less than one meter of cloth per day, resulting in high costs and uneven quality. To meet the power needs of the entire Xia cloth industry chain, State Grid Jiangxi Electric Power launched a systematic upgrade of the power grid. Through line renovation, equipment capacity expansion, and intelligent inspections, the power supply reliability for the Xia cloth industry rose to 99.9864%. A dedicated service team conducted more than 200 inspections and rectified 46 safety hazards.
A single stalk of ramie weaves together a new vision of thriving industries, prosperous farmers, and a beautiful countryside. More than 200 high-speed smart looms, automated degumming production lines, and digital spinning equipment have replaced old manual looms, boosting production efficiency by more than 30 times. Bio-degumming technology reduces wastewater discharge by 12,000 tonnes per year, enabling green and low-carbon production. Ramie cultivation and processing have created jobs for more than 10,000 farming households and helped more than 200 households increase their annual income by an average of 18,000 yuan. Cultural tourism projects related to Xia cloth receive more than 500,000 tourist visits annually.
Today, Xinyu Xia cloth has moved beyond small workshops and embarked on a path of modernized, standardized, and brand-driven development.