China adds 3,304 megawatts of wind power

As of the end of 2007, China had 158 windfarms comprising 6,469 wind turbines and a total installed capacity of 5,906 megawatts (MW) operating in mainland China. Last year, China added 3,304 MW of wind power, an increase of 147.1% compared with 1,337 MW added in 2006.

Among the newly added market share, Chinese products made up 55.9%, surpassing foreign companies for the first time, according the Second China (Shanghai) International Wind Energy Exhibition & Symposium 2008 (CWEE2008) held at the end of April in Shanghai.

China has a theoretical wind-energy reserve of 3.2 terawatts (1 terawatt

1,024 gigawatts) at 10 meters in height. The total exploitable terrestrial wind energy is estimated at 800 gigawatts (GW) at 50 meters high, and the actual exploitable wind energy offshore is about 150 GW at 50 meters high. Based on the current growth trend, the total installed capacity of wind power in China is expected to reach 15 GW-20 GW in 2010, and 80 GW-100 GW in 2020.