China launches one of its largest offshore wind power projects

China has brought the CGN Yangjiang Fanshi offshore wind power complex with a total capacity of 2 GW to full power. A special feature of the project was the large-scale use of new 18-megawatt wind turbines.

According to China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN), 131 offshore wind turbines are installed at the complex.

Of these, 33 units have a capacity of 18 MW each. According to the company, Fanshi became the first large offshore wind power project in China where turbines of this class were used serially, not just as individual demonstration units.

The use of more powerful turbines makes it possible to obtain the same or greater total generation with fewer installations. This reduces the need for foundations, submarine cables and part of other infrastructure, and also potentially lowers maintenance costs for large offshore wind farms.

The Fanshi project was developed in stages, and after the launch of the last installations, the entire complex reached its design capacity of 2 GW. Der Standard notes that its capacity is comparable to almost half of the total installed capacity of all wind power plants in Austria.

In recent years, China has been rapidly increasing offshore wind generation and simultaneously increasing the unit capacity of turbines. The transition to installations of 18 MW and more allows building large projects further from the coast and more effectively using areas with stronger and more stable winds.

Based on materials from: CGN, Der Standard