China has done it again when it comes to green energy facilities, they just installed the world’s largest wind turbine. The single-capacity offshore turbine is in Hainan. Administered by Mingyang Smart Energy, the facility has an output of 20 MW.
China turns on largest wind turbine in Hainan
Energy company Mingyang Smart Energy announced that it successfully installed what is known as the world’s largest single-capacity offshore wind turbine. The energy and wind turbine project is located in Hainan, China.
According to the company’s media release, the wind turbine facility has the ability to generate a power output of up to 20 MW, besting its past record of an impressive 18 MW as recorded in 2023.
The communique from the energy company has it that the MySE18.X-20MW turbine is designed to be lightweight, modular, and highly reliable.
“With its massive wind rotor diameter of 260-292 m (853-958 ft), it has a maximum wind sweeping area of 66,966 sq m – that’s more than 12 NFL football fields,” reports New Atlas.
“The company has a history of building the largest wind turbines our oceans have never seen before, and notes that with an annual average wind speed of 8.5m/s, its new turbine can generate 80 million kWh of electricity; that’s said to be enough to power housing for 96,000 residents annually.”
Does size matter? We look at China’s wind turbine
Boasting a wind turbine as big or large as this one built in Hainan, one would hope it’ll hold up against extreme weather such as typhoons. In addition, the company announced that this one in China is built to withstand level-17 typhoons at wind speeds of up to 79.8 m/s (178.5 mph)
Meanwhile, it is reported that ambitious projects like this one are important to not only increase clean energy production, but also to make such efforts more cost-effective while focusing in the future.
What energy bodies say about Mingyang’s project
In a detailed report released by the International Renewable Energy Agency published released in August, it noted that the global weighted-average LCoE of offshore wind went from being more than twice as expensive as the cheapest fossil fuel alternative in 2010 to just 17% more costly in 2022. During that period, the cost fell from $0.197/kWh to $0.081/kWh.
The energy and environmental publication states that the report also illustrates how the localized cost of electricity (LCoE) from offshore wind is still high compared to other renewable energy sources like solar, hydropower, and geothermal.
So there’s indeed a lot more to be done before offshore wind becomes more widely favored around the globe.
“However, there’s tremendous potential to generate far more energy for our needs from offshore wind projects. Thanks to consistently strong winds out at sea, these turbines can produce energy more reliably and efficiently compared to onshore wind turbines,” it is mentioned.
EVWind published that with this turbine, it’s also easier to transport large towers and blades out to sea on ships than by road. And with bigger turbines comes more energy.
“The 26-megawatt offshore wind turbine boasts remarkable dimensions. Its hub center is 185 meters high, equivalent to a 63-story residential building. The designed rotor diameter exceeds 310 meters, with a swept area exceeding 10 standard football fields, making it the largest turbine globally in terms of both capacity and size,” it posted.
Looking to future projects, the energy company also has a larger offshore turbine in the pipeline that is capable of delivering 22 MW of power – the project is scheduled to be installed next year.
On behalf of the company which made the turbine, Dongfang Electric Corporation, vice general manager Wang Jun said they are “Whether in terms of technical specifications or efficiency and reliability, we are at the forefront of the world.”