China's electricity regulator is planning nationwide equipment and safety checks on wind-power farms in August, in the wake of several large-scale outages caused by turbine and connectivity problems.
China
's
electricity regulator is planning nationwide equipment and safety checks on
wind-power farms in August, in the wake of several large-scale outages caused
by turbine and connectivity problems.
The problems facing the wind sector could cloud efforts by Chinese wind-turbine
makers to promote exports needed because of overcapacity in the domestic
market, and they add to China's other headaches resulting from a headlong rush
to modernize, including a recent deadly train wreck and questions over the
safety of its high-speed rail network.
The review will help address potential safety risks at a time when increasing
amounts of renewable energy are due to be connected to the grid in the future,
the State Electricity Regulatory Commission said on its website.
Among problems faced by the sector have been four separate incidents at Jiuquan
in
Gansu
province, in which 2,978 turbines were disconnected from the grid, China Daily
newspaper reported Friday.
There have been 35 equipment failures reported in Jiuquan alone this year, the
paper quoted SERC as saying, many due to turbines not being equipped with
technology needed to handle changes in voltage.
China
's
target for renewable energy to account for 15% of the national energy mix by
2020 from around 8% now has prompted an investment boom in the sector.
This has already made
China
the
world leader in wind-power generating capacity, with as many as 34,000 turbines
now installed. But many are in windy areas such as the remote Xinjiang and
Inner
Mongolia
regions in the west and north of the country, which lack grid
connectivity, and do little to meet spiralling energy demand in the industrial
heartlands in the south and east.
The government is now prioritizing grid connectivity--an average 800 megawatts
of new wind power capacity has been connected to the grid network each month
this year.
There is a big manufacturing overcapacity issue--
China
's
turbine production capacity is estimated at 35 gigawatts, at least 40% higher
than its domestic demand this year, according to Citigroup power analyst Pierre
Lau.
Leading domestic producers Sinovel Wind Group Co. (601558.SH) and Xinjiang
Goldwind Science & Technology Co. (2208.HK) could find export opportunities
crimped by their relatively short production track records--which makes it
difficult to demonstrate the quality of products to overseas buyers--and the
recent problems in their home market. The companies weren't immediately
available to comment on the equipment and safety inspections.
"While our turbine makers are launching more sophisticated models of three
megawatts and above, I think they should also address some of the quality
issues with their key models that are used widely in onshore wind farms,"
China Longyuan Power Group Corp. (0916.HK) President Xie Changjun said in June.
Longyuan is the country's largest wind farm operator by capacity.
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