JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #34 - July/August 2007 - 17

Market survey : Asia / Wind energy Asia now in second place for new installations* In 2006, installed wind-power capacity in Asia grew by 53%, accounting for 24% of new installations worldwide. This is the strongest increase in installed capacity outside of Europe. The additional 3,679 MW bring the continent’s capacity to more than 10,600 MW. ndia is still Asia’s strongest market, with 1,840 MW of new installed capacity. This takes its total figure up to 6,270 MW. The Indian government has envisaged a capacity addition of around 10,000 MW by 2010, and an average of 1,500-1,800 MW of new windpower installations is expected every year for the next three years. I China, North China and the QinghaiTibetan Plateau. The ocean-based wind resource is capable of supporting a further 750 GW of capacity. The first Chinese wind farm went on line in 1986 as a demonstration project. With financing from foreign grants or soft loans, more grid-connected turbines were installed. Then, in 1994, the former Ministry of Electric Power decided to develop wind farms as a new source of clean power. Regulations were issued to cover grid connection and payment for the electricity generated, making wind power commercially viable. By the end of 2006, total output for the installations on mainland China had reached 2,604 MW, with an annual growth of more than 1,300 MW. Although satisfying electricity demand and reducing air pollution are the usual driving forces behind wind power, this has been made more difficult in China, where coal-fired generation is much cheaper than wind. Wind-power development must therefore focus on cost reduction through large-scale projects and the local manufacture of wind turbines. The Chinese government estimates that the localisation of wind-turbine manufacturing brings benefits to the local economy and helps to keep costs down. Since most good wind sites are located in remote and poor rural areas, wind-farm construction will benefit the local economy through the annual income tax paid to county governments, which represents a significant proportion of their budget. Other benefits include power grid extension for rural electrification and employment in windfarm construction and maintenance. Concession projects To create a stable market, it is crucial to establish a wind-turbine manufacturing industry. The National Development and Reform Commission (NRDC) has been promoting “Wind Power Concessions” for large-scale commercial development to encourage local authorities to invite both international and domestic investors for the development of 100 MW wind farms at potential sites. The tendering procedure is designed to bring down generating costs and increase the proportion of locally made components. The major criteria for a wind-power concession project are as follows: • Each project should be 100 MW and the wind turbines, no smaller than 600 kW. • 70% of the wind-turbine components should be made in China. • Local authorities are responsible for building access roads to the wind-farm sub-station, and the grid company, for installing transmission lines to the substation. • Project investors are selected by public bidding, with the lowest feed-in tariff (price per kWh) obtaining the contract. The length of the contract is 25 years. • After the first 30,000 full-load hours of operation for a turbine, the feed-in tariff is reduced to the average for the power market at that time. • All electricity produced by the project Thanks to China’s new Renewable Energy Law, the Chinese market grew substantially in 2006: China more than doubled its total installed capacity by installing 1,347 MW of wind energy that year, a 70% increase over the previous year’s figure. This brings China’s capacity up to 2,604 MW and makes China the sixth largest market worldwide. This growth is expected to continue and even speed up. According to the list of approved projects and those under construction, more than 1,500 MW will be installed in 2007. The goal for wind power in China by the end of 2010 is 5,000 MW, which should be reached well ahead of time, according to experts’ estimations. With its large land mass and long coastline, China is rich in wind-energy potential. Estimates by the Chinese Meteorology Research Institute show that the land-based exploitable wind resource has a potential power generation capacity of 253 GW. Areas with rich wind resources are located mainly along the south-east coast and nearby islands, and in Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Gansu Province’s Hexi Corridor, and in some parts of Northeast China, Northwest No34 July-August 2007 / JEC Composites Magazine

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #34 - July/August 2007

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #34 - July/August 2007