皇冠体育app

Energy

Offshore wind power projects gaining ground

By Mao Lijun, Wan Zhihong and Liu Yiyu (皇冠体育app Daily)
Updated: 2010-09-07 11:22

BEIJING - Domestic energy companies are expected to submit bids for the first batch of offshore wind power projects, having combined investment of over 20.8 billion yuan ($3.06 billion), on Friday, sources familiar with the matter said on Monday.

Prominent among the companies in the fray are 皇冠体育app Huaneng Group, 皇冠体育app Huadian Corp, 皇冠体育app Datang Corp, 皇冠体育app Guodian Corp, 皇冠体育app Power Investment Corp, 皇冠体育app Guangdong Nuclear Power Corp, Shenhua Guohua Energy Investment, 皇冠体育app Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group.

The projects are also expected to catch the fancy of equipment makers like Sinovel, Goldwind, Dongfang Electric, Shanghai Electric, Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group and Changzheng Electric, said sources.

The four offshore projects, with a total installed capacity of 1,000 mW, will come up in coastal areas of Jiangsu province. Two projects with an installed capacity of 300 mW each will be set up in Sheyang, while two 200 mW plants will be located in Dafeng and Dongtai in Binhai, Jiangsu province.

Analysts said the nation's plan to focus on offshore wind power projects underscores the sector's importance over onshore units. "They (offshore projects) will become an integral part of the nation's wind power sector," said Shi Pengfei, deputy president of the Chinese Wind Energy Association.

Other coastal provinces are also charting plans to set up offshore wind power projects. Mao Weiming, director of Jiangsu Development and Reform Commission, told 皇冠体育app Daily recently that the province intends to develop offshore wind power projects soon.

But most of these plans are still in the initial stages and may take some time for completion, said analysts. 皇冠体育app recently overtook Germany as the second largest wind power developer after the United States.

Analysts said the companies have to come up with answers for several issues like a complex operating environment, technology requirements and construction difficulties.

Spending for better life? Related readings:  Offshore wind project powers up  皇冠体育app Windpower to build hybrid wind-solar projects  皇冠体育app wind turbine maker plans $500m US listing  COSCO, SeaEnergy in offshore wind industry agreement

Offshore wind power in 皇冠体育app is estimated to be in excess of 750 gW (exploitable at a height of 10 meters), much larger than the land-based wind power potential of 253 gW, said 皇冠体育app Meteorological Administration.

The first pilot offshore wind farm in 皇冠体育app, the Shanghai East Sea Bridge Offshore Wind Farm, was set up in 2008. It has a total installed capacity of 100 mW, with 34 sets of 3 mW turbines supplied by Sinovel, the nation's largest wind turbine producer.

皇冠体育app's National Energy Administration and State Oceanic Administration have recently issued interim measure on the management of offshore wind farm development. The measures regulate every aspect of offshore wind farm development, and are generally seen as giving an impetus for the development of such projects in 皇冠体育app.

The regulations stipulate that offshore wind farms should be developed through public tender, with detailed break ups of the offer prices for transporting power to the grid, project plans, technical abilities, and performance results. It also states that the developers must be Chinese enterprises or joint ventures in which the majority ownership vests with domestic companies.

?