GE to beef up offshore wind power efforts

Energy giant's Guangdong facility to focus on domestic, regional projects

GE Renewable Energy will actively participate in the development of offshore wind power in China in the years ahead, said senior executives of the company.

"We are helping to facilitate clean energy development in China as the country is likely to become one of the largest markets of offshore wind power in the world," said Rachel Duan, president and CEO of GE's global growth market.

The company is one of the world's leading providers of end-to-end solutions for reliable and affordable green power.

Duan made the remarks on Tuesday as the company started construction of its first offshore wind power factory in Asia in Jieyang, a coastal city in southern Guangdong province.

Construction of the offshore wind power facility is one of GE's commitments in helping develop clean energy in China. The company aims to serve the domestic and regional projects in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, said Duan.

Part of a dedicated offshore wind industrial park in Jieyang, construction of the factory is expected to be completed in 2021. The firm will start assembly and production of the world's most powerful offshore wind turbine, the Haliade-X 12 MW, in the second half of the year.

The city of Jieyang aims to develop an offshore wind cluster by marshaling harbor and industry-related suppliers to serve local and regional projects.

A nacelle from GE's Haliade-X 12 MW offshore wind turbine has arrived at the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult's testing facility in Blyth, Northumberland in the UK, ahead of a rigorous testing program designed to prepare it for years of operation at sea.

The Haliade-X 12 MW is a multimillion dollar investment and will contribute to reducing the cost of offshore wind energy to make it a competitive source of clean and renewable energy, according to the company.

One Haliade-X 12 MW turbine can generate up to 67 GWh of gross annual energy production, saving up to 42 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of the emissions generated by 9,000 vehicles in one year, company sources explained.

GE will also establish a new operation and development center in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, to perform research and development activities focusing on regional needs, the company said.

"Our new factory in Jieyang and the Operation and Development Center in Guangzhou will put us in a better position to meet our customers' demands in this fast-growing industry while contributing to meet China's growing offshore wind ambitions," said John Lavelle, GE's CEO of Offshore Wind.

In addition to the construction of the offshore wind power facility and operational center in Guangdong, GE has also speeded up its investment in China by signing an agreement with the China Huaneng Group Co Ltd to build a 715 MW wind farm in Puyang in Central China's Henan province.

According to the agreement, GE is set to provide 286 units of its 2.5-132 turbines with 130m soft steel towers to the wind farm in Puyang. The deal was signed during the China International Import Expo in early November.