BEIJING,
May 30 (Xinhua) -- A Sinovel made 6MW wind turbine prototype, fresh off the
production line, can be used in onshore, offshore and inter-tidal wind farms,
Tao Gang, vice-president of Sinovel Wind Group Co. Ltd. said Monday.
It is
the first of its kind produced in the country. Previously, Germany was the only
country capable of independently developing the turbine -- the largest in terms
of capacity in the world -- and is the only country to have tested the
prototype in the natural environment.
With
128-meter blades in diameter, the prototype has greater wind capturing capacity
and is more efficient at utilizing wind resources than other turbines, said Tao.
Tao said
indigenous production of the huge turbine will accelerate development of
offshore wind power in the country.
Given
the growing scarcity of land resources and emission reduction targets, European
countries and the United States are pushing development of offshore wind power.
Over the
next decade, Britain and France plan to install 7,600 offshore wind turbines --
each unit with a capacity of more than 5MW.
China is
also racing to tap offshore wind power. The first 100MW offshore wind farm went
into operation in Shanghai in August 2010, with 34 Sinovel made 3MW turbines
installed.
In the
same year, China completed public tender for offshore wind farms totaling 1GW
in capacity in the eastern Jiangsu Province. Construction of the wind farms
will start this year.
Sinovel
is looking to develop 10MW turbines, according to Tao.
Other
Chinese wind turbine makers are also developing large capacity turbines.
Xiangtan Electrical Machinery Co. Ltd. (XEMC), based in central Hunan Province,
produced a 5MW prototype last October.
Before
2000, the domestic wind turbine market almost exclusively relied on equipment
imported from Europe.
Shi
Pengfei, vice president of China Wind Energy Commission (CWEA), says the
introduction of wind power concession projects and preferential feed-in tariff
policy for wind power has boosted localized production since 2000.
Chinese
wind turbine makers have expanded output through licensed production or joint
design with foreign partners. China has over 80 wind turbine makers.
The top
three wind turbine markers in the country, Sinovel, Goldwind and Dongfang
Electric, are among the top 10 makers in the world.
By the end of 2010, domestic cumulative wind
installed capacity amounted to 44.7GW, the largest in the world, and accounted
for 23 percent of the world total, according to the CWEA.