Claims from respected bodies such as the IEA suggest that China’s wind output could overtake the combined might of the EU and the US within 20 years. What will fuel this spectacular growth, and what will it mean for the rest of the marketplace? PES investigates…
In 2012 (most recent figures), 12,960 MW of new wind capacity was installed in China, increasing the accumulated capacity to a colossal 75,324.2 MW. During the year, wind power generated 100.4 TWh of electricity replacing nuclear power as the third largest electricity source in China. But compared to conventional power, wind power only accounted for 2% of generation, so there still is a high potential for growth. In the future, wind power will play a more important role in the clean and sustainable energy and electricity supply.
After years of rapid development, China’s wind power industry has entered an adjustment period and the industry has shifted from expansion of quantity to the improvement of quality. The government and enterprises are paying attention to improving the quality of the Chinese wind power industry. In 2012, grid integration and consumption were the most important bottlenecks that restricted China’s wind power development, but the government is taking policy, management, and technical measures to overcome these problems.
Hence the 12th Five-Year Plan for Renewable Energy Development and the 12th Five-Year Plan for Wind Power Industry Development, both of which were released last year. They set clear wind power development and technology goals for 2015 and 2020. The report at the 18th CPC National Congress clearly stated that the Chinese government will promote the construction of ecological civilization, work hard to build a beautiful country, and support the development of energy-efficient and low-carbon industries, as well as new and renewable energy sources. China’s 2012 Energy Policy states that by the end of 2015 the consumption of non-fossil energy will account for 11.4% of primary energy consumption and the proportion of non-fossil energy installed capacity will reach 30%. Compared to 2010, the energy consumption per gross domestic product (GDP) will be reduced by 16% and the emission of CO2 per GDP will be reduced by 17%.
