China Longyuan Power Group completed its 150-megawatt Jiangsu Rudong pilot intertidal wind farm off China's east coast in November, becoming the country's largest offshore wind farm.

The project was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission as a national pilot program in December 2010. It can generate about 375 million kilowatt- hours of power every year, with more than 2,500 hours of wind power available annually.

Compared with conventional coal-fueled power plants, it can save the equivalent of about 110,000 metric tons of standard coal every year, while cutting carbon dioxide emissions.

China's largest wind power developer "will lead the way for China to develop offshore wind power, particularly in site selection, planning and design, installation and maintenance," Xie Changjun, its general manager, told Xinhua News Agency.

Greenpeace said in a report in September that China continued to be the world leader in installed wind power capacity in 2011 with an increasingly diversified wind power market.

China consumed more than 100 billion kWh of wind power in 2012, about 30 percent more than in 2011.

About 40 wind power projects operated by Longyuan Power were approved, covering 12 provinces and autonomous regions, including Hebei, Yunnan, Jiangsu and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region since 2012.

(China Daily 01/29/2013 page7)