News Summary:
7 GB UHV Wind Power Transmission Base will be built in the Xilin Gol League
On March 19, 2018, Xilin Gol DRC announced the construction of a new UHV Wind Power Transmission Base in the Xilin Gol League. The project is aimed at supporting export of power produced in the Xilin Gol League power base which will including 7 GW of wind power. (Xilin Gol League DRC)
The line will connect via lower voltage lines to wind farms in 8 cities, guaranteeing grid offtake and tackling the high wind curtailment problem in North China. This will in turn enable new growth for Xinlin Gol league in which new large wind farms are planned.
Source: North China Electric Power University, Beijing 102206, China
News Summary:
± 800 kV UHV line nearing completion in Yunnan-Guangdong
The Yunnan-Guangdong connection is now 98% complete and is expected to be operative by mid-year. It will have a power transmission capacity of 5 GW and plan to deliver 20 TWh of electricity annually, equivalent to 1/4 of the annual electricity consumption in Shenzhen. (CHINA ELECTRICITY COUNCIL)
This 3143 km infrastructure project built to carry excess hydro power in Yunnan to coastal load centers. Through this project, the Zhusanjiao region will be able to reduce its coal consumption by 6 million tons, carbon dioxide emissions by 16 million tons, and sulfur dioxide emissions by 123,000 tons per year.
Source: Azure International
News Summary:
Wind: Guangdong Province announces the investment of 16 offshore wind farms
The Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission has issued the "Guangdong Province Major Construction Project Plan for 2018" officially announcing 1,098 key projects, with a total investment of 5.67 trillion yuan including 600 billion yuan to be invested during 2018. The overall plan includes 16 offshore wind power projects with the first 99MW project already in operation. (GDDRC.GOV.CN)
The plan includes 6 offshore wind farms currently under construction with capacity of 1,618MW and 10 new offshore wind farms with capacity of 3,650MW (see detailed breakdown of project owners from our database below). The total capacity of 5.27 GW is lower but more realistic than the 10 GW of offshore wind which was earlier announced as part of the "Thirteenth Five-Year Plan"(2016-2020) for the Development of Marine Economy in Guangdong Province by 2020. However we advise wind investors to correlate these provincial level plans with national level NEA targets over the same period in order to assess any potential grid connection and FIT risk.
Source: Azure International
Dear readers,
It's been a while since we've shared some weekly China cleantech news. We had interrupted this good habit last year due to some internal changes. Answering the requests of many of you who have kindly contacted us, we're now thrilled to re-launch the effort, especially as plenty is happening and the Chinese cleantech landscape is more exciting than ever. We're starting with this simple info-graphic summarizing the growth in the power market during 2017, to make sure everybody is up to speed. Starting next week we'll revert back to our standard format with 5 selected news items along with summary analysis from our experts. We're always happy to exchange on the Chinese Cleantech markets with you, learn about new technologies and make new friends, so don't hesitate to reach out. Thanks to all for your precious support !
Hubert Beaumont
Azure International
CEO
News Summary:
Wind: Fujian Province Publishes Development Plan Outline of the Provincial 13th Five Year Plan
Fujian province recently published the provincial development plan as part of its 13th 5YP. Included in the plan is the provincial government's intention to promote both onshore and offshore wind development. While the provincial target does not set out a concrete installation number for 2020, instead calling for a “doubling of 2015's installed capacity of 1.72 GW” by 2020. (Fujian DRC)
Fujian Province Large Scale Power Projects Distribution Map
Source: Fujian DRC
Offshore wind currently occupies only a small percentage of China's total wind generation capacity, however we expect it to grow steadily over the coming years. China has currently set out a national 5 GW target for offshore wind development, with Fujian slated to be the centerpiece of this development. The Fujian Putian Nanri offshore wind project's total installed capacity of 400 MW is currently the largest offshore wind project in China.
Under the national target, Fujian province plans to reach 3 GW by 2020, or 60% of total offshore wind. However the provincial development target is more vague, simply calling for a “doubling of 2015 installed capacity”. While doubling 2015's 1.72 GW would certainly surpass the national target of 3 GW, the noncommittal language used for the provincial target is reflective of the difficulties China has faced in developing offshore wind, with it's attendant technological challenges, greater investment needed and longer build-out period.
News Summary:
Solar: Anhui's Industrial Green Development Plan Emphasizes Distributed Solar
Anhui's Economic Information Council recently released the Industrial Green Development Plan as part of the province's 13th Five Year Plan. The document calls for the acceleration of constructing distributed energy sources in industrial parks, with particular emphasis on solar rooftops and solar heaters. Distributed solar, along with smart grid technology, is encouraged for integration into industrial parks, particularly iron and steel factories, as part of Anhui's promotion of industrial energy efficiency. (BJX CN)
Source: Azure International
While not specified in the most recent Solar Power Development Plan, under the national Electricity Development Plan, the Solar Power target for 2020 contains a 60 GW sub-target for distributed solar. Anhui province currently has 3.45 GW of installed solar capacity, however, only 780 MW of this is distributed solar. Nevertheless, this installed capacity figure still makes Anhui the fifth largest province for distributed solar in China. The top four are Zhejiang (2,070 MW), Jiangsu (1,730 MW), Shandong (1,190 MW), and Guangdong (880 MW).
Developing distributed solar has been more difficult than utility-scale projects primarily due to the high self-consumption threshold requirement set out by the NEA. The requirement mandates that at least 80% of the self-generated power will be consumed on-site with no more than 20% of the power sold back to the grid, and largely limits the applications of distributed solar to energy intensive industrial parks. Therefore, successfully integrating distributed solar with heavy industry will be key if China's ambitious 60 GW sub-target is to be met by 2020.