Offshore Wind Milestone: China's Dongfang Unveils 26-MW Turbine
Chinese state-owned manufacturer Dongfang Electric announced the company has completed production of a 26-MW offshore wind turbine, continuing a trend of ever-more-powerful turbines from that country.
The turbine’s nacelle, shown dwarfing company workers in a photo posted to social media on October 12, now ranks as the world’s largest. Dongfang said it has been designed to work in areas with wind speeds of 8 meters per second (m/s) and more, and the company said it is built to withstand typhoons.
The company, which built the turbine at its factory in Fujian Province, said the equipment would be capable of generating 100 GWh of power annually if it was operating in an area with average wind speeds of 10 m/s.
Chinese state-owned media reported that the turbine’s blades have a swept area of more than 310 meters. The hub height is listed at 185 meters.
The 26-MW turbine tops the 20-MW unit launched by China’s Mingyang in August, which at that time was touted as the world’s largest. That turbine would be capable of generation 80 GWh annually, with a swept area of 260 to 292 meters. Siemens Gamesa earlier this year said it was developing a 21-MW offshore wind turbine.
China also continues to build larger onshore wind turbines. Sany Group earlier this month announced installation of a 15-MW onshore wind unit, the world’s largest onshore turbine to date.
—Darrell Proctor is a senior editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).