Siemens receives first order for offshore wind power plant in China

Siemens Energy has received an order to supply 21 wind turbines with an output of 2,3 megawatt (MW) and a rotor diameter of 101 meters each for an offshore project in Rudong County, Jiangsu province in China. The customer is Jiangsu Longyuan Offshore Wind Power Co., Ltd., a subsidiary company of China Longyuan Power Group Corporation Ltd., one of the biggest wind power developers in the world. Commercial operation is expected in late 2011. The scope of supply includes a five-year service and maintenance agreement.

The 50 MW-project is a break-through in Siemens renewable energy strategy by securing the first offshore wind power order from China.

"With more than 600 wind turbines with a combined capacity of more than 1,800 MW installed in European waters, Siemens is clearly the market leader in offshore. But we also see good opportunities for offshore wind power in China with its shallow water near the consumption centers on the coast," said Jens-Peter Saul, CEO of the Siemens Business Unit Wind Power.

The 21 offshore wind turbines in China will be equipped with Service Lifts and ladders from Avanti Wind Systems.

According to the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association (CREIA) China will expand its offshore wind power installed capacity to 5 gigawatts (GW) by 2015 and 30 GW by 2020.

"This order is an important step in entering the rapidly growing Chinese wind power market," added Saul.

With almost 45 GW installed wind capacity and a growth rate of 73 percent from 2009 to 2010, China is the world's largest wind power market today.