Page 11 - AsiaElec Week 01 2021

AsiaElec RENEWABLES AsiaElec

China adds over 1 GW of

offshore wind capacity to

grid over festive period

CHINA A leading Chinese nuclear power operator, Shanghai, the 802-MW facility covers over 114
China General Nuclear Power Corp. (CGN), square kilometres near some of the busiest ship-
has further cemented its increasingly impres- ping lanes in the world at the mouth of China’s
sive move in recent years into offshore wind by iconic Yangtze river.
bringing a new offshore wind farm online, and Made up of three individual but linked pro-
connecting it to the national grid as the world jects totalling 134 turbines in all, of seven differ-
moved from 2021 into 2022. ent models, the H1, H2 and H3 locations also
As the largest nuclear power company in feature separate site-linked offshore booster
China, CGN is already known to be behind stations.
almost 2.5 GW of offshore wind farms along Each of the 134 turbines was manufactured at
the 14,500-km Chinese coastline, and has sig- one of four domestic suppliers on the mainland,
nalled its intent to keep adding renewable energy a self-sufficiency factor being lauded in China
options to its portfolio. alongside the speed at which the whole facility
The firm currently heads numerous on and was laid out, constructed and then connected to
offshore wind projects in China as well as others the national grid.
alongside nuclear development programmes With the installation of the first turbine, just
at facilities across Asia, southern Africa and in 11 months ago, and the final, 134th turbine being
north-western Europe. erected at the start of December, coupled with
The most recent addition to its line-up is the whole project reaching capacity just weeks
a 240-MW wind farm off a small island in the later, China is now touting itself as the undenia-
south-east of the country in coastal waters ble regional leader in all aspects of offshore pro-
between China and Taiwan. duction and construction.
Comprising 60 turbines in all, the com- The €2bn project was developed and is owned
pany has said that projected estimates indicate by Jiangsu Huawei Wind Power Co. along with
a return of around 960mn kWh per year when Qidong Hua Er Rui Wind Power Technology Co.
operating at full tilt. In mid-2021, reports from China indicated
In China’s all-important moves toward car- that lawmakers in Beijing had decided not to
bon neutrality this number is also being seen impose any installation limits on mainstream
as saving on the use of over 308,000 tonnes of renewables projects in the lead-up to COP
coal, and also as helping to reduce national CO2 26 in Glasgow, despite concerns on increas-
emissions by a number believed to be in excess ing upstream costs in both the wind and solar
of 900,000 tonnes per calendar year. sectors.
Elsewhere in China over the festive season, As a result, sources indicate that figures to
Jiangsu Qidong, one of the most prominent off- be confirmed in the coming months of final
shore wind farm names in East Asia in recent 2021 installations are expected to show a total
years, was also brought online at full capacity, of between 100 and 140 GW of total renewable
just over 18 months after a mid-2020 ground- capacity throughout the year, with around 40
breaking ceremony. GW of the total from a combination of on- and
Located across a 9-km stretch just over 30 offshore wind power. ™
km offshore Qidong in Nantong Province near

Week 01 05•January•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P11