China is once again raising the bar in the competition for the most powerful wind turbines. Most recently, Chinese wind turbine manufacturer MingYang Smart Energy ushered in the era of the 20 MW power class with a 20 MW turbine at the beginning of September 2024. The new offshore wind turbine from the Chinese state-owned Dongfang Electric Corporation (DEC) with an output of 26 MW per turbine, on the other hand, is entering completely new performance dimensions.
The world’s largest offshore wind turbine now presented by Dongfang Electric is a Chinese proprietary development with independent property rights. The technology group also benefits from the state development of a Chinese wind turbine industry chain, and the supply chain is completely in its own hands. Dongfang Electric only announced the construction of an 18 MW offshore wind turbine in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong on June 5, 2024.
Dongfang Electric: Own offshore wind turbine with 26 MW capacity presented
On October 12, 2024, the world’s largest offshore wind turbine with a record output of 26 megawatts (MW) rolled off the production line at the offshore wind energy industrial park in Fuqing City, Fujian Province.
The rollout and inauguration ceremony was attended by Wang Jun, party group member and deputy general manager of Dongfang Electric Group, and officials from the Fujian Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and Three Gorges Fujian Company.
New mega offshore turbine – supply chain completely in own hands
The new offshore wind turbine is the world’s largest single machine with the largest rotor diameter, according to the state-owned company. The supply chain is then completely independent and controllable, the company emphasizes. The entire turbine consists of more than 30,000 parts and components.
According to the Chinese, the key technologies of the generator, rotor blades, bearings, electronic control system and other key parts have reached the world’s leading level. This is based on the latest achievements and progress in building a Chinese wind turbine industry chain.
The new mega wind turbine uses the third generation of fully integrated semi-direct drive technology with a highly integrated shaft system, gearbox and generator. Compared to the 18 MW offshore wind turbine with semi-direct drive, which is already connected to the grid, the generator has a 67 percent higher torque and the vibration coefficient of the turbine has been reduced by 36.8 percent. A fully sealed structure was introduced to protect against salt spray corrosion.
DEC’s offshore wind turbine is equipped with a double anti-typhoon scheme and can withstand a super typhoon.
At an average wind speed of 10 m/s, a single turbine of the new power class produces 100 million kWh (100 GWh) of clean electricity per year at 4,000 full-load utilization hours.