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China Leading Global Race to Make Clean Energy

  • 31-01-2010 02:49PM
    #1
    probe
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,055 ✭✭✭


    China - world's largest maker of wind turbines...

    In the pic caption, the NY Times journo says "Shifting to sustainable energy could leave the West dependent on China, much as the developed world now depends on the Mideast. "

    I don't understand his logic. You can buy the wind turbines from China or anywhere else or make them yourself.

    The key issue is who has got the wind to keep the turbines turning. China is unlikely to be able to export large quantities of electricity to the West given the cost/energy loss of the transmission infrastructure over many thousands of km. Perhaps Japan and South Korea are potential electricity export target markets. Given the shortage of supply and delivery lead times for turbines, there is no reason not to buy Chinese turbines (assuming they are up to European standards of product quality in terms of reliability, are over-engineered, and the kit will last at least 25 years).

    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/31/business/energy-environment/31renew.html?pagewanted=1&ref=business


Comments

  • #2
    Squeeonline
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,580 ✭✭✭Squeeonline


    Interesting, because I read about a year ago that China was opening one coal fired powerplant a week on average.


  • #3
    probe
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,055 ✭✭✭probe


    Squeeonline wrote: »
    Interesting, because I read about a year ago that China was opening one coal fired powerplant a week on average.

    It is a big and growing market for energy. 1,335,570,000 estimated population as of the end Jan 2010. Bigger than India (1,176, 453,000). They need everything they can get their hands on in terms of energy and raw material resources.

    India is building 7,000 km of motorway and road every year - 20,000 km typical road building in progress at any point in time. China will shortly have 65,000 km of motorways and 2.3 million km of N and R roads.

    As far as coal use is concerned, the smog is intolerable in most Chinese cities. CO2 isn't an issue - so much as respiration.

    Chinese real-time population clock: http://www.cpirc.org.cn/index.asp

    While they have capacity to export wind turbines, they need all the energy they can get their hands on for the CN market.


  • #4
    robtri
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,473 ✭✭✭robtri


    just reading over the article.. is it not just saying that China, is just the biggest manufacturer of them... not the biggest user....


  • #5
    probe
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,055 ✭✭✭probe


    robtri wrote: »
    just reading over the article.. is it not just saying that China, is just the biggest manufacturer of them... not the biggest user....
    China has installed wind capacity of 23 GW - compared with about 70 GW in Europe and 35 GW in the US. China has about the same wind turbine capacity installed as Germany (largest wind capacity in Europe).

    China wind (installed capacity) is growing rapidly

    2005 1.2 GW
    2007 6 GW
    2008 12 GW
    2009 23 GW
    2010 could be 40 GW?
    2011 could see CN passing EU in installed capacity?

    Ireland has about 1.2 GW at the moment.


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