Carbon Trust takes its offshore wind expertise to China
The Prosperity funded project Offshore Wind Accelerator was launched in Beijing on July 23.
Carbon Trust takes its offshore wind expertise to China
The Carbon Trust will now be applying the learning from its world leading Offshore Wind Accelerator (OWA) programme to help China meet its national target to grow its offshore wind capacity from under 0.5 gigawatt (GW) today to 5 GW by 2015 and to 30 GW by 2030.
The UK, with over 3 GW installed, currently leads the world in offshore wind power development and the Carbon Trust is spearheading a £45 million innovation programme working in partnership with 9 major developers of offshore wind power to cut the cost of offshore wind by 10% by 2015. The knowledge gained from the programme is now being taken to China and shared with leading developers, turbine makers, research institutes and government.
The Carbon Trust, in conjunction with Chinese Wind Energy Association (CWEA) and China Energy Conservation and Environment Protection Group (CECEP) Wind Power Corporation, held a workshop in Beijing on 23rd July 2013 as part of a 10-month project. Over 50 offshore wind professionals from across the country attended the workshop, including from government, developers, turbine makers, foundation companies and research institutes. The event was opened by Chairman Shi Dinghuan of China Renewable Energy Society and by John Edwards, Counselor of the British Embassy in Beijing.
The project is being funded by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in Beijing as part of its Prosperity Fund. The FCO launched the Prosperity Fund in April 2011 to tackle climate change, strengthen energy security and promote an open global economy in key emerging economies.
The project, whose target completion date is March 2014, aims to identify collaborative programmes or initiatives that could reduce the cost of offshore wind in China through adoption of existing technology available overseas or by developing new technology within the country.
Stephen Wyatt, Director of Innovation at the Carbon Trust said:
We are delighted that our ground breaking work to cut the cost of offshore wind is to be put to work in China. China, like the UK, has a vast offshore wind resource and looks to be well placed to develop it. Like the UK the priority must be to do so at the lowest possible cost and that’s where new innovation can really help.